Willy Mason - Shepherds Bush Empire

Willy Mason / Elvis Perkins

Shepherd's Bush Empire, London on Wednesday 16 May 2007

I don't suppose that as a reviewer you should really admit that you're a fan, or not, of the band. I don't really care though because I love Willy Mason. The first time that I saw him was a few years ago supporting Ben Kweller at Islington Academy. Having not heard any of his material it was unusual for a support act to make such an impression on me. I bought his homemade ep, had it signed and I was an immediate convert.

Over last couple of years I've followed Willy around numerous nooks and crannies of London. The tiny Barfly Enterprise in Camden. A secret show in a basement somewhere in Soho. The Bedford Arms in Balham. A surprising support slot for Radiohead on two consecutive nights at Hammersmith Apollo. You get the message. I can't get enough of Willy Mason.

And all of this despite the fact that I don't believe he's put together two exceptionally strong records. On both of his albums he has produced some strong folk/country tracks but there are also some weaker, slightly more tedious patches. It is live that Willy Mason is at his best.

Having seen Willy brilliantly command a crowd in intimate venues on numerous occasions, I felt an element of sadness that Shepherd's Bush Empire was just a little too big for him to hold the attention of everybody in attendance. From the general chatter throughout most of the concert it is fair to say that people weren't as gripped as they should (or could) have been. His usual stories and tales were not received as well as they usually are and the connection with the crowd was just not quite there. His whiskey-smooth deep voice and super laid back attitude just didn't quite cut it with the London crowd. I bet he'll go down a lot better with a more raucous crowd in Glasgow!!

Saying this, there were a plenty of sublime moments. Backed by a band of 4 people ("a group of friends") including his brother called Sam on drums, Mason was able to create a fuller live sound than he has been given resource to do so in the past. New songs, and in particular his two new singles, 'Save Myself' and 'We Can Be Strong' were high points. Viola player Nina Violet gave a rootsy country feeling to many of the songs and took the lead vocal for the chorus for 'We Can Be Strong'. When Mason eventually joined in on the final chorus of the song the harmony created was exquisite - far better than the album version . Also, 'The World That I Wanted' was one of the few songs that the crowd gave Mason the respect that he deserved.

Mason's signature tune, 'Oxygen', was kept until the very end and it was a moment worth waiting for. On the whole though, Mason's (usually charming) rambling banter was quite weak and slightly embarrassed ("So, do you come here often??") and his band were possibly a little too laid back to captivate such a large audience. For all I care I hope he returns to a more intimate stage again because it's there that he's at his best.

A special mention to Elvis Perkins who was (despite his father dying of AIDS and his mother dying as a passenger on one of the planes that hit the World Trade Center) an exceptionally confident and entertaining country storyteller. His tunes were all easily accessible and a couple had an 'out of control ' big-band feel to them. Worth investigating. His bass player also looked spookily like a lanky younger version of Jack Bauer.

Willy Mason at The Enterprise, Camden

Willy Mason

Barfly Acoustic The Enterprise on Thursday 3 February 2005

Firstly, what a great little venue. The evening's entertainment took place in a small room, above a pub in Camden, with a makeshift stage created from chipboard balanced ominously on milk crates.

Support came from the charming lead singer of The Magic Numbers, Romeo Stodart. Equipped with only his guitar he took to the stage to treat the 100 strong crowd to a sublime performance of gorgeous melodies. Harmonies came in an unorthodox fashion. The three other members of The Magic Numbers were in the audience and they couldn't resist chipping in whenever they felt like it to the amusement of the audience who, I don't think, really knew what was going on! The Magic Numbers have been tipped for greatness in 2005 and after the performance of their lead singer it's easy to see why. I don't think anybody could have asked for a better support act.

Onto Willy!

It's very hard to believe that Willy Mason is just 19 years old. Hailing from New York, he has already supported the likes of The Grateful Dead, Bright Eyes and Ben Kweller, but tonight he sets off on his first headline tour. Considering that his album, Where the Humans Eat, is not officially released until later this month it is no mean feat that this tour has already sold out. Word of mouth has rapidly spread and judging by tonight's performance, Willy Mason will go from strength to strength.

Without the backing of his brother, Sam, on drums (he's back in High School taking exams!) Mason stripped his songs down to classic country and blues acoustic simplicity. His lyrics are clever, witty and simple and when delivered with his whisky-smooth deep voice and laid back attitude it is almost impossible not to be drawn into the songs (although the fact that I was slowly getting blind drunk can only have helped my "love" for Willy!).

Tonight there are a number of stand out tracks. "Hard Hand to Hold", "So Long", and "Oxygen" are all classics. "Oxygen" even brought the first bit of crowd participation of the night as they sang along to "on and on and on it goes. the world it just keeps spinning". I would have been singing too but by this stage I was so pissed that I'd forgotten the words. I do, however, remember the grin on Willy's face as (maybe for the first time?) the crowd sang along to one of his songs.

The set finished with the confidently uplifting "Fear No Pain" followed by a roaring reception and a room full of smiles. Willy Mason is definitely a case of "watch this space". If his name is unfamiliar to you today I can only recommend that you give him a listen.

Oh, and also, he comes across as a genuinely good bloke!

Kings of Leon @ London Astoria.

Kings of Leon / The Hold Steady / 120 Days

London Astoria on Monday 26 February 2007

This was probably the best line-up of all of the NME gigs that have been taking place over the past couple of weeks. Norwegian band 120 Days were, however, a bit second-rate. It was hard to keep focus on the music when each of their songs dragged on for what seemed like an eternity. In fact, during their 40 minute set they only managed to squeeze in 4 songs (before they were chucked off – about time too!).

After taking a bit of a synthesiser pummelling from 120 Days it was a relief to hear a bit of classic cheesy 80's rock from Brooklyn based The Hold Steady. What was most noticeable about The Hold Steady was just how much they were enjoying themselves. Lead singer, Craig Finn, was revelling in their recent middle aged breakthrough after the release of their 3rd album 'Boys and Girls in America'. The band, all in their mid-thirties, were proud to pedal every rock cliché that they loved from the Springsteen/Bon Jovi light’n’tight denim era. With a chain smoking guitar player and leather clad piano player they were massively unfashionable but assertively proud of that fact. They went down an absolute treat with the crowd.

They finished with ‘Southtown Girls’ and if you’ve never heard it then download it immediately (legally of course!!). As far as support acts go, The Hold Steady did a fantastic job in warming up the crowd.Of the numerous bands that appeared off the back of The Strokes revolution back in 2002, Kings of Leon have probably fared the best and it wouldn't be an understatement to say that they are rivalling The Strokes on the popularity front. Their upcoming April tour sold out within the hour and tickets for this gig were exchanging for more than £100 outside the venue. I'm lucky enough to have heard Kings of Leon's new album 'Because of the Times' and it’s fair to say that it’s a stronger effort than their New York equivalent’s 3rd album.

"Of the numerous bands that appeared off the back of The Strokes revolution back in 2002, Kings of Leon have probably fared the best and it wouldn't be an understatement to say that they are rivalling The Strokes on the popularity front"

London Astoria never fails to disappoint on the celebrity front and the VIP balcony seemed that bit busier than usual. In attendance was self confessed fan Noel Gallagher and the bass player from The Killers (possibly wishing that his band were this good?!).

Astoria had reached fever pitch before Kings of Leon came to the stage to an operatic intro tape. Opening with new track 'Black Thumbnail', lead singer Caleb Followill took centre stage in his sleeveless denim jacket and incredibly tight jeans. Judging by the crowds reaction to many of the new songs, they'd all got their hands on a copy of the new album too as they sang along with Caleb word for word.

‘Black Thumbnail’ ran seamlessly into ‘Taper Jean Girl’ which was quickly followed ‘King of the Rodeo’. There wasn’t much talking from the band except the occasional polite ‘Thanks for coming out tonight’ or ‘It’s great to be back in London’ from Caleb. The hits kept on coming and it was unremitting. Older classics such as ‘Molly Chambers’, ‘The Bucket’ and ‘California Waiting’ provoked mass sing-alongs and flurrys of crowd surfing.

Lyrics have never been a strong point for the Kings of Leon and it’s a challenge in itself to try and comprehend what Caleb is mumbling on about. However, in the new acoustic based and radio-friendly song ‘Fans’, Caleb could be heard singing something along the lines of “The London scene it ain’t so bad when you’re the King. The King they want to see-ee-ee-ee”. Possibly a thumbs-up to the perks of stardom and the fans in London when your chips are down? To be honest, who knows?

It was the new tracks that showed the Kings taking a slightly different musical direction. The encore had two absolute beauties, opening with ‘Arizona’ which is Kings of Leon’s biggest lighter waving anthem to date. Then ‘Charmer’ gave evidence of a heavier, hard rocking sound evocative of the Pixies and including a few Caleb shrieks. They finished with ‘Slow Night, So Long’ and a (somewhat rehearsed??) microphone throw that left the crowd screaming for more.

Rumour has it that there’s a song writer by the name of Angelo behind the relentless stream of classic rock tunes that the band seem to continually produce. Still, as a live band the signs are all there that Kings of Leon have matured into something grand and, with the material to hand, they are on the cusp of becoming true rock gentry.

The set was:
'Black Thumbnail'
'Taper Jean Girl'
'King Of The Rodeo'
'My Party'
'Soft'
'Molly's Chambers'
'Fans'
'Bucket'
'Milk'
'Mcfearless'
'Four Kicks'
'On Call'
'California Waiting'
'Spiral Staircase'
'Trani'
(Encore)
'Arizona'
'Charmer'
'Slow Night, So Long'