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Concert
Review by Nick Morgan |
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THE SAW DOCTORS
Shepherds Bush Empire, London, December 7th 2007 |
| Sinead
Posts: 80. Re:Shepherds Bush Empire 07/12/07
- 2007/12/11 17:15 I think the Docs were awesome
on Friday, really good. But I agree I don’t
think the crowd were quite as up for it as thgey
were last year. Just wasn't as wild! Although we
tried to make up for that in my little area by going
completely mad! I had a brilliant night! Shame about
I useta lover being missing, but apart from that
it was proper Ghostcastle!! |
| It’s
nearly Christmas isn’t it? I can tell because
what passes for seasonal goodwill is going into
overdrive inside a packed, noisy, excited, boisterous,
happy and thoroughly saw doctored Shepherds Bush
Empire. Actually I think it’s what the Daily
Mail would call binge drinking. There’s a
big crowd all around us who all seem to know each
other, or be related in some way, and the majority
are from the L'Île Emerald. While I’m
fighting jungle-warfare style to the bar the Photographer
is bonding with the matriarch of the party, exchanging
Oirish family stories, life-histories and the like
– you know, the usual stuff that happens at
these dos. So what with her pedigree and my Gaelic
thatch we’re family. And we’re neatly
tucked into a corner by the sound desk from where
the boozing and the behavioural changes it brings
on as the night progresses is as much a spectator
sport as the Saw
Doctors. While we nurse a glass of
the dark stuff it seems the majority are on lager
and cider, pints and pints of the stuff, occasionally
accompanied by something spirituous with coke. The
girls are delicately sipping on their half pints,
and throwing back shorts as if they’re going
out of fashion. One of the girls, wearing only a
large T-shirt (which some of her ‘friends’
seem to be trying to take off her) is hoisted precariously
on the shoulders of a boy, looking not forward to
the stage, but back to us and the folks above at
the bar. Her shirt is advertising the venue of an
after show party in south London – free bus,
bar ‘till four, and “free buffet”,
the thought of which is making the Photographer
wretch. The way these guys are going they’re
not going to make it. |
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Oh,
and on the stage it’s the Saw Doctors. How
do they manage it? For a long time they’ve
been the ultimate good time show band – you
wonder how they can work through the same songs
(some of which, we should be reminded, are very,
very good) night after night after night with such
apparent enthusiasm. But they do. It’s a shame
that subtlety is thrown away in favour of the party
atmosphere, but you can still appreciate the quality
of some of the writing – and the playing is
surprisingly good – ex Waterboy Anthony Thistlethwaite
is quite outstanding on bass. While years of touring
seem to be etched hard into Davy Carton’s
face his vice is as strong as ever. And front man
Leo
Moran works the audience to perfection –
he’s all Buddy Holly glasses, squinting glances
into the audience and comic raised eyebrows –
but he drives and drives the band on, and –
as if they need it – whips the willing crowd
into even more of a largely alcohol-fuelled frenzy.
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And it’s sadly noticeable that as they do
so the universal good humour just begins to get
a hard edge as dancers crash into drinkers and jealous
boyfriends try to repossess their girls. But we
stay to the end (although it’s totally thrown
away I have to hear ‘Hay Wrap’ which
traditionally comes as the final encore) and manage
to exit intact, promising that we’ll meet
up next year, same gig, same place. |
| It’s
cold outside – smokers are huddled outside
the pubs, early seasonal revellers are stumbling
along the pavements, Santa Claus hats at jaunty
angles. Behind us the rest of the crowd are pouring
from the theatre. We’ve been down to the doctor’s
– it is nearly Christmas isn’t it Serge?
- Nick Morgan (photographs by Kate) |
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