Electric Soft Parade
Live at Cockpit on Thursday, 9th May 2002
Icelandic moodsmiths Lorien aren't exactly influenced by the Sex Pistols. No, Radiohead are probably more their bag. And the more plaintive moments of Thom's mob too. A strange choice of support for this tour and one that's not really our cup of char if truth were
told, especially given the youthful musical style of tonight's headliners.. Look I'm sorry that this is a shambling, rambling, meander of a review thus far but in a way it has got a lot in common with Lorien. This review has taken rather a while to compile because there's not a lot to say about this latest Icelandic export apart from they're not as bonkers as The Sugarcubes.
The last time the Electric Spft Parade played this venue the taller skinnier brother had a strop. This time it was t'other. Not fans of Leeds then. And that's a shame
really, because when we first met Tom at the Leeds Festival at Temple Newsam, he was a fairly charming young man. In fact I've not interviewed a more nervous person.
There's no time for on-stage pleasantries tonight, though. Which is a shame really as I was going to bleat on about him being a drumming wunderkind, verily beating seven bells of crap out of the small dumkit. Well I've said that anyway, but I think the lunatic faction that you seem to get at most gigs rather got the goat of ESP's rotund multi-instrumentalist.
Why-oh-why people of a certain age (and they do tend to be older) pay to see a gig by a band that they obviously quite like on record (I saw lyrics being sung along to) - and then stand there in the audience
blatantly taunting them at gigs? These people are tossers and should be banned from gigs full stop.
It is interesting to note that apart from the crazy taunting and the lack of atmosphere from the crowd that a day after Mansun's struggle with the PA system, ESP manage to get in a stinging tirade against the quality of our dearly beloved Cockpit and in particular its creaking sound system.
Great songs by the way, one of the best albums this year and it's cool to see 'Silent To The Dark', 'Empty At The End' and all the rest live - and not during an
episode of Teachers. The fact still remains though, that these are temperamental young men from Brighton would in a game of footy be prone to bookings. A bit like Leeds United's very own kid genius, Alan Smith.
One hopes the roadies took out the brown M&Ms from the confectionary rider the following night..