This almost didn’t happen for me, thanks to a slight ‘overdoing’ last night at a friend’s birthday party. All-day hangovers are not great accompaniments to cross-county travel. Anyway, lots of water and a satnav that rather worryingly kept telling me to make sharp right turns on the motorway later, I found myself in the friendly (especially the little fat dog!) and hellishly hot Brudenell Social Club, having absolutely no idea exactly what sort of show we were in store for.
Duke Garwood
First up, we had the wonderfully melancholy Duke Garwood and his brand of haunted, lonely blues. An amazing talent, Duke manages to create eerie soundscapes from his guitar to accompany his woe-soaked voice.
It’s not all misery though, as each song is concluded with a ‘thankyou’ and a wry, contented smile. Plus a brief comedy moment when he had to pause mid-song to replace his guitar lead that had somehow managed to escape.
Anyone planning on seeing subsequent dates on this tour are well-advised to arrive early, as Duke is an excellent opening act.
And then, onto the main event. the closest I had previously come to a Mark Lanegan solo acoustic event was the “An Evening With” show he did with Greg Dulli and David Rosser in London’s Union Chapel, which was a genuinely uplifting experience and would have been almost impossible to top as an event. So, Mark and David very wisely go about this set in a very different manner indeed. Where the shows with Greg were seated (including the artists), almost informal affairs, this was set up almost as a a straightforward no-frills rock set.
The Headliners
Mark and David took to the stage not to a polite smattering of applause, but to a roar from the crowd. the stage, like the rest of the club was tiny and so Mark was pretty much right among the audience , with barely enough room to fit the two artists and the small trestle table where water and towels were available for between-song water/towel related business. And also where the Gutter Twins acoustic shows were carefully-arranged affairs, the songs on offer here from right across Mark’s career were offered up as take-it-or-leave-it no-frills affairs that worked perfectly in this environment.
Launching straight into Field Song, the tunes came thick and fast. Early set highlights included Like Little Willie John, River Rise and a beautiful rendition of Soulsavers’ Can’t Catch the Train. Message to Mine was an oddity that came across wonderfully, Mark and David managing to strip down what is a fairly complicated and layered on on record to just acoustic guitar and voices without losing any of the potency of the song. B-side Mirrored fitted into the set perfectly, and in the same flipside vein, Pink Floyd’s Julia Dream is given a downbeat yet captivating airing. In truth, it’s not unfair to say that every song performed tonight was a highlight.
It cannot be understated just how good Mark Lanegan is sounding nowadays. His voice is as good now as it ever was, if not better. Every whisper and roar is delivered perfectly, and he can still hit the high notes when called upon, as a flawless delivery of On Jesus’ Program and no-holds-barred encore closer of Where the Twain Shall Meet will attest to.
David Rosser also plays his part to perfection. Rollicking rendition of Hangin’ Tree aside (where he really lets loose), each song’s backing is stripped right down to the bare essentials, leaving room for Mark’s voice to add all the necessary colour. His backing vocals also brought an extra dimension where needed.
This was a truly memorable show, featuring remarkable performances from all concerned. And I can’t wait to see and hear them again.
Setlist:
Field Song
One Way Street
No Easy Action / Miracle
River Rise
Like Little Willie John
Don’t Forget Me
Can’t Catch the Train
Message to Mine
Mirrored
Resurrection Song
Julia Dream
Sunrise
One Hundred Days
On Jesus’ Program
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Encore:
When Your Number Isn’t Up
Hangin’ Tree
Where the Twain Shall Meet
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