|
|
Whatever you think of the Bluetones, you have to admire them for seemingly being prepared to go back out on the road and re-convert their fans one by one. This current tour sees them on the road for close on three months - now that's dedication if nothing else is.
As if they weren't making things difficult enough for themselves, tonight also sees the Tones relying mainly on new material - a ballsy move if ever there was one. For the record, most of it isn't too bad either - highlights are the upcoming single "Fastboy" and the jagged mix of riffs and electronica that is "Here It Comes Again".
Although there's the occasional nod towards the back catalogue ("Cut Some Rug", "Soloman Bites The Worm", "If"), tonight's set is more about the new than the old - tellingly, they take a very big risk by not playing "Slight Return" at all.
Although hardly a clean break from the traditions of old (the Bluetones seem to have now accepted that they're better off sticking to their own very distinctive sound than trying to branch out too far), it's good to see that the old-timers on the Britpop block are still willing to take some risks here and there. Can they keep it up? Keep yer eyes peeled for our Bradford review in a couple of times and we'll let you know...
Reviewed by Andy James
