WORDS AND IMAGES MICHAEL BOND
Casino, a soul-inspired 5 piece out of Liverpool is worthy support for the night and is possibly one of my newest favourite bands. The origins of their name hark back to Wigan “Casino”, one of the Strongholds of the 70’s Northern Soul movement that has acted as an inspiration to the band’s sound. As well as drawing off the sounds of Motown, funk and modern indie. This musical blend helps them to produce a modern RnB sound with a strong driving rhythm and catchy keys, all wrapped together with singer Dillon Kelly’s vocals which come straight out of the era that has inspired him. This combination creates a groove the crowd can easily get behind as they build up the main event.
The Zutons make their way to the stage after a brief introductory monologue, now with only 3 original members of the band, the live show is bolstered by 3 additional musicians to help bring the noise. Straight out of the traps, the set starts strong with “Zuton Forever” taken from their debut 2004 album “Who Killed…… The Zutons?” With its easily recognisable twangy opening riff and quirky sound, the crowd respond with enthusiasm that sets the atmosphere for the next 90 minutes. This is swiftly backed up by “Confusion” also taken from the same album, and standalone 2004 single “Don’t Ever Think (Too Much)” which all have the crowd bouncing from the combination of guitars. sax and keys.
Next up is a new song “The Big Decider” the title track taken from their 4th studio album, due for release on the 26th of April which sees the band collaborating with music industry legend Nile Rodgers and Ian Broudie of the Lightning Seeds. This is swiftly followed by “Pressure Point” with McCabe’s guttural cry of “pressure” towards the end of the song, reminiscent of Paul McCartney in Helter Skelter.
This nicely separates a setlist spanning 20 years, as we move into a run of songs from the 2006 album “Tired of Hanging Around” intersected with some more new music. “Why Won’t You Give Me Your Love” is next up, with its driving guitar riff and saxophone combination that has given The Zutons their unique sound over the years.
The tempo is now taken down a notch as the 3 original members, Dave McCabe (vocals), Sean Payne (drums) and Abi Harding (sax) take centre stage to perform an acoustic track together, followed by “Hello Conscience” bringing the musical energy back up which in turn translates over to the crowd. On reflection, this is a well-choreographed move as the band transition into what is arguably one of their most recognisable songs “Valarie”, partly because of its original release as a single back in 2006 but probably more notably from the Mark Ronson and Amy Winehouse version released a year later. From the opening cords right through to the end, the slower-paced bluesier original saw the whole room in fine voice with phones held high, capturing a classic song sung in its original form, which for me was the first time hearing the original live.
“You Will You Won’t” quickly follows which continues to build on the crowd participation as we move towards the end of an outstanding live show, rounding the night off with “Creeping On The Dancefloor”, the band’s first single release in 16 years, as the band then roll into a pounding instrumental version of “Zutons Forever” to close the night.
SET LIST
1/ ZUTON FOREVER
2/ CONFUSION
3/ DON’T EVER THINK ( TO MUCH )
4/ THE BIG DECIDER
5/ PRESSURE POINT
6/ WHY WON’T YOU GIVE ME YOUR LOVE
7/ PAULINE
8/ tbc
9/ tbc
10/ HELLO CONSCIENCE
11/ VALERIE
12/ RAILROAD
13/ REMEMBER ME
14/ YOU WILL YOU WON’T
15/ CREEPING ON THE DANCEFLOOR
16/ ZUTON FEVER REPRISE
FOLLOW THE ZUTONS
FOLLOW CASINO
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
