The Coral - London Brixton Academy - 21/11/03
5/5
By: Clara Burtenshaw
Friday night, and it's that time of year again when the British nation's stars embarrass themselves in a multitude of charitable Technicolor atrocities (known as telethon-fundraiser, 'Children In Need'). Only this year there is a void where soap-opera 'Brookside' once served to alleviate such terror. Gone are the days of televisual escapism within the most deprived and dramatic estates in Liverpool, our Sinbad... and beloved universal salutation: 'Y'Neurite mate.' What's an internet music magazine to do?
But wait - the docking of a rumbling night-galleon beckons, we see a bandanna, stoned youths in search of gold, and not a Pudsey-Bear in sight.
This call to abandon nostalgia, knock back the moonshine and put on the pirate-boots was obeyed at once as rockfeedback prepared for a twang-tastic soiree of maracas and mayhem. For tales of The Coral's sonic oasis' are legendary. And like the most talented of sea-rovers, they came for only a short while, looting, plundering and pillaging the most exquisite gems for their collection. The Victims? The La's, Madness, Captain Beefheart, The Specials and Gram Parsons to name but a few, but there were rumours of Cossacks and Ukrainian gypsies too; whoever licensed this particular type of music piracy must have been a gentleman thief indeed.
Yes, a sold-out Brixton Academy saw our toe-tappin' hoedown heroes get plenty pluckin' busy at an event that showcased work from the 'Skeleton Key'EP, debut album 'The Coral,' 'Magic & Mecicine', as well as a preview from a future release.
Such diverse musical cross-pollination was accompanied by equally rich lighting, throwing the six geezarish vagabonds into vibrant purple light, psychedelic pinks and greens and an onerous spotlight demarking James Skelly's trilbied silhouette. A perfect setting for The Coral's poetic song-stories of romance, misfits and revenge was made all the more atmospheric by the euphoria of the crowd who sang along to favourites such as 'Liza', 'Simon Diamond', 'Don't Think You're The First and, of course, breakthrough single 'Dreaming Of You'.
In the week that those other famous Liverpudlians release a posthumous, stripped-down album of old hits, these hometown harmonists proved that youth does not necessarily equate to musical naivety when it comes to such genre-bending, back-to-basics rock and roll wonders. The night ended with band-member John running laps of victory, whilst gesturing with typical northern manual aplomb - a shambolic spectacle of scally skiffling, Scousers and super-soakers.
Artists in this article: The Coral
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