WORDS AND IMAGES DESH KAPUR
There was love at the Pier Head Liverpool, and they called it James
There’s always a certain kind of excitement when you visit a new music festival and today it was to be the brilliant “On The Waterfront” it was the final night of a 4-night run and bringing it to a finale was the iconic band, James.
The outdoor stage sits in the heart of the iconic waterfront right next to the famous skyline of “The Three Graces”, “The Royal Liver Building”, “The Cunard Building” and the “Port of Liverpool Building”, on one side and the River Mersey on the other, and to be honest it was brilliant especially when we arrived and the sun was shining, alas the sun didn’t stay for long. But that wasn’t to dampen anyone’s spirits, it was still a perfect platform for a band like James to tell their stories.
From the very minute, I arrived at the Waterfront the arena was buzzing with the young and the old. Ready for a full day of some brilliant bands and artists.
The first band for me were GirlBand, and they were good, very good, even more impressive when you think they are only 12 months old, or so I am told, I couldn’t find much other information on their background to be honest, but they played a brand of indie rock.
Next up was the Five-piece Liverpool band The Sway playing a brand of upbeat, psychedelic tunes. with catchy hooks, upbeat rhythms, great harmonies and jangling guitar riffs The band’s unique sound resonated with the audience and they played their way into a few hearts and many more fans
Then came the first of two bands that impressed me on the day and I think people should check them out, as both were impressive, First was The Clause hailing from Birmingham, they took to the stage with real confidence, they played a set full of clever guitar riffs intertwining around one another, solid bass lines with floor tom thumping backbeat, it was all fully appreciated by the early crowd as they smashed their way through a great set, definitely one to watch.
Then it was The Cheap Thrills which I thought were outstanding, I remember catching them a few years back and I was more than impressed then and it has always surprised me why this band’s star has not shone more brightly, why are they not on my radio? great indie pop rock songs delivered with perfection, songs that can stand alongside anything on your indie playlist. Their whole set is non-stop sing-along bangers. And the crowd loved it. If I had to describe their sound I would say they sit somewhere in indie-guitar-rock, synth-driven, alt-pop space but it is a sound all of their own. They write anthems with hooks a plenty, a little reminiscent of The Wombats and that’s not a bad thing
After a short break to grab some food and a drink, it was back to the stage for massive hometown heroes Red Rum Club another band that isn’t getting what they deserve. Full of sun-kissed indie-pop choruses and beautiful melodies all given a joyous mariachi twist courtesy of trumpeter Joe Corby. It’s a touch of cabaret and disco all wrapped in a Liverpool indie twist. Brilliant stuff and the crowd loved every minute of it, these guys know how to bring it when playing live.
Next up were another legendary Liverpool ( Hoylake) band The Coral It’s hard to believe that their first self-titled debut album was released in 2002. Now with ten albums to their name
Early songs of the band sit very much in the indie pop realm but as time has gone by they have stepped into psychedelia, rock and even country and tonight’s set is a mix of all of those. The band is tight and James Skelly’s vocals have only got better as the years have passed. A truly great Liverpool band, no I take that back a truly great British band
And then it was time for James and they need no introduction and so it follows, neither does their music. They are easily recognisable, yet they have a knack for wearing different musical clothing every time they bring us something new and tonight, they lay bare their 40-year music career.
James are Icons and stalwarts of the British music scene, they have again given us tracks of envy and brilliance and classic track after classic track took their place on stage tonight and with the crowd singing along, mutual love was there for all to see.
Immaculately performed songs mixed with precious moments, gave us all, that James experience, an experience we all love. Having written so many iconic songs and witnessed so many different times, this is a British band to be cherished and heard but above all else, loved.
As to be expected tonight was brilliant, this was helped by the crowd knowing and singing along to many of the songs and the band with their beautiful blend of folk, Indie cool,
In my opinion, every time I see James they get better and better, every time James releases a new record it gets better and better, James isn’t sitting on past glories they are forging new ground as a band and creating more music for us to love and cherish, thank you, James
SET LIST
1/ JOHNNY YEN
2/ COME HOME
3/ RING THE BELLS
4/ INTERROGATION
5/ HONEST JOE
6/ BORN OF FRUSTRATION
7/ OUT TO GET YOU
8/ ALL GOOD BOYS
9/ MOVING ON
10/ HYMN FROM A VILLAGE
11/ SOUND
12/ LAID
13/ SIT DOWN
14/ BEAUTIFUL BEACHES
15/ GETTING AWAY WITH IT (ALL MESSED UP)
16/ SOMETIMES (LESTER PIGGOT)
FOLLOW JAMES
FOLLOW THE CORAL
FOLLOW RED RUM CLUB
FOLLOW CHEAP THRILLS
FOLLOW THE CLAUSE
FOLLOW THE SWAY
My life is a soundtrack, i track my life through music, photography is my passion, my escape, my expression. Without both i have pieces missing, thankfully i’m blessed and get to combine both.
Born in Manchester, lived in Australia for 22 years where i was heavily involved in the Australian Music Industry, firstly in bands (Singer) and then managing bands (all original), I moved back to the UK, Wales specifically 10 years ago
