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Juliana Hatfield's just dedicated My Sister to the royal spawn. Just had Evan's Big Gay Heart with a saw. Been that kind of night.
— Jude Rogers (@juderogers) December 4, 2012
It was that kind of night.
If you haven't seen it yet, don't miss the pro photoset by Beanotown Photography on Flickr.
As for the saw, you can see the saw on a seesaw by the seashore on this photo and on this YouTube clip. You'll note that Juliana sat this one out. She backed off whenever the woman with the saw (Mara Carlyle) came out. Very wise.
It was a great finale to the 5 night tour of England, Ireland and Scotland in the plush all seated surroundings of London's Royal Festival Hall.
Despite what you may have read elsewhere it was well attended. It's a 2,500 capacity venue and apart from the upstairs area the hall was largely sold out.
— Juliana Hatfield (@julianahatfield) December 5, 2012
Out of shot in Juliana's photo are imposing balconies which flank the hall, giving it the feel of a posh galactic senate from Star Wars. They're quite impressive pods despite their failure to levitate or contain Natalie Portman.
It's fair to say most of the crowd were more familiar with Evan and the Lemonheads material. Expecting everyone to know a Madder Rose cover from a Blake Babies album is perhaps too ambitious!
Juliana's songs were well received though - notably her excellent takes on 'Ugly' and 'I Picked You Up' (a request earlier in the day on Twitter), together with the one most people knew - 'My Sister'. She grew into the performance as the night went on, taking inspiration from the venue rather than being intimidated by it.
Craig's sidebar: I took a friend along for their first Hatfield experience. Afterwards I was asked which of Juliana's albums I would recommend. We may have a convert! Also, hello to Lieve, Carsten and Charlie who I spent some time with. It was great to share the evening with you.
Surprisingly there were a few negative comments on Twitter from a handful of people who clearly went with very different expectations to the type of show these two have been performing in recent years. These views appear unrepresentative of the overwhelmingly positive atmosphere in the hall.
Juliana is a highly talented singer and guitarist performing songs which many of us have a long standing emotional attachment to. Evan's songs were effortlessly performed showcasing his talent as one of the most gifted songwriters of his or any generation - Juliana saying as much with an impromptu compliment to her partner during the set.
What's not to love?!
Evan and Juliana winging it as they go along is rather charming - someone commented that it was like watching talented teenagers jamming in the bedroom.
When they returned for the encore their lack of clear planning was even more evident. A late crowd request for 'Rain' was picked up by Evan and nearly paid off as he looked to Juliana for her consent. There's every chance this unrehearsed song so reliant on harmony might have come off as shambolic, but it's a chance a lot of us would have been happy to take.
Instead, Juliana decided that this was her time to say her goodbyes to London, leaving Evan to close the show on his own with what remains the finest Lemonheads cover song.
Mrs Robinson? Mrs Shmobinson.
No, of course it was 'Different Drum' - an odd but somehow fitting end. Evan and Juliana may appear to travel to a different beat yet there is a beautiful connection, enhanced by 25 years of exceptional songwriting.
It was a privilege to witness and for many of us in the crowd there's no other place we'd have rather been.
This review first appeared on Live on Tomorrow - a Juliana Hatfield fansite.
Posted without comment.
Stella Creasy, the Labour MP for Walthamstow, is a devoted fan of The Wedding Present, the Leeds indie guitar band whose songs of unrequited love led critics to hail them as natural successors to The Smiths in the late 80s. Ms Creasy reserves a special place in her heart for Seamonsters, the band’s 1991 album, an unflinching collection of songs detailing the bitterness and recrimination of relationships gone wrong, set to a backdrop of grunge-era distorted guitars. In what appears to have been a cathartic experience, Ms Creasy, a rising Labour star, has written an extended essay to accompany a vinyl 10” edition of the classic album, released next Monday.
Unexpected.
David Gedge:
Well I think the current band actually do Seamonsters better than the original line up. There’s no baggage or having to worry about being originally on it. It’s just timing really, there’s been quite a few changes and this Wedding Present is certainly rockier than what you may have seen four years ago or so.
He's not wrong. The current lineup is exceptional.
Last night's show at Cambridge was the best I've ever heard those songs.
The Wedding Present's 'Seamonsters' tour ends this week. It is my favourite album of all time and the band play it entirely, in sequence, at these shows. I'm going to see them again tomorrow in Camden. If you can, you should too.