A nice Chinese banquet to kick off the proceedings (although really it was far too much for a pre-concert shindig - I was stuffed after the starters!) and it was indeed onto the Ritz. Which may or may not be famous for something to do with The Smiths.
The support act was playing as we went in. Tings Tings or something. They seemed relatively good. Plus there was a good chance that the singer was fit. The two songs I heard where almost enough to make me regret not getting there earlier.
Scanning the venue two things became clear. I am not trendy enough to be a fan of the NYPC. Nor am I gay enough. I didn't feel out of place because I just don't care about these things, but if I were the kind of guy to feel out of place at concerts I doubt I would ever have felt as out of place as I would have done at this. And that includes that coach trip to Sheffield to see the Spice Girls.
At least fellow attendee Mike Pickering has the gravitas to back up his out of place vibe.
Anyway onto the concert itself. It was a good one, although not a particularly great one. My immediate thought whilst listening was that live, at least, NYPC are little more than the credible version of Rogue Traders. Sadly the vitality that comes across on record wasn't quite there.
Lead singer Tahita Bulmer was certainly exuberant enough, but the rest of the band added little to the visual flow of the show. I have to admit mind you to being entranced by keyboard player Lou Hayter's hips. She can wiggle that's for sure.
It's perhaps telling that the biggest crowd reaction of the night came for a cover version, Technotronic's Pump Up The Jam. Indeed the bloke in front of me, who had been fairly still all evening, whirred into action for that one and became somewhat of a blur.
So all in all it was a decent night out, but failed to live up to the album, which is fantastic. And to top if off, the only song they didn't do was Jerk Me. Which just happens to be my favourite. What a bunch of bastards ;-D
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