Teenage Fanclub - Friday evening
The Fanclub played a nostalgic set of mainly classic material from Bandwagonesque, Grand Prix, Songs from Norther Britain with a few newer songs thrown in including "Baby Lee" the first single off their new album "Shadows" . Even though this was a festival and the Fanclub were in the outside stage, the gig was exceptionally intimate, I was right down the front only a matter of a few yards from the band with plenty of room to breathe, maybe this is a sign that their popularity is on the wane or perhaps they just down enjoy the same reverence that they command in certain parts of the west coast of Scotland where they are idolised as power pop demi-gods. I felt that the crowd although supportive were not fully "on message" as I heard one audience member say to her friend "they are a bit ... old", I felt like tapping her on the shoulder and saying "that bloke may look like a geography teacher but he happens to be on of the finest songwriters this country has produced in the last 20 years (Gerry Love) and the others are no slouches either!", however I figured it would be wasted effort as they were waiting for Tinchy Stryder to headline.
Anyway suffice to say they were excellent - probably one of the best times I have seen them. They ended their set Everything Flows their first single, and incidentally, the record after which this blog is named. As far as I am concerned they can keep playing until they really are old ... I will certainly keep buying my ticket.
The Fall - Saturday Night
The Fall were almost the antithesis of the Fanclub in outlook. While the Fannies tugged at the heartstrings on a pure/very wonderful nostalgia trip, as ever with the Fall it was year zero. Playing virtually all new material from "Your Future, Our Clutter", with a pretty new line up (as ever) - but playing as if their lives depended on it with a kind of power that most new bands could not dream
of. This wasn't like the shambolic performances of the late 90's early 00's, oh no, this was more like a band in its prime. Much thanks to the tightest rhythm section that they have had for a long time. M.E.S was totally coherent and commanded the stage - he still did the re-positioning of all the mics on stage and randomly adjusted the amplification.For those that have lost the Fall trail a little over the last few years - their last two albums have been two of their strongest releases in a decade or so, and while other grumpy old men of a certain age and rock pedigree seem content selling us butter and car insurance Smith admirably follows his own muse - refusing to sell out.
