It’s the second night of Skinny Lister’s headline,
sold out UK tour on the back of third album The Devil, The Heart & The
Fight. Skinny Lister always seem to be gigging. I have no idea when they find
the time to write and record new material but they manage it and the quality
never slips. Their third album is glossier and more polished than Down On
Deptford Broadway and Forge & Flagon but it still has that distinctive
Skinny Lister feel. Punk Shanties I think has to be the accepted Lister genre.
Certainly live the new songs get the full on SL treatment.
There are many things I crave in a live performance
but paramount is fun. To see a band fully immerse themselves in the joy of
playing live will always lead to a great gig. It feeds into the audience and
the night is a constant domino effect. As the band get more and more vibrant on
stage the crowd get more and more chaotic. Skinny Lister live are immense fun.
And more. Their musicianship is second to none. Each band member delivers.
Front and centre is Lorna Thomas, a whirling,
flirtatious dervish. The only time she stops flailing round the stage is on one
of her many excursions into the crowd. A brave move for someone who was having
costume issues. She’s flanked by singer/songwriter/guitarist Dan Heptinstall and
multi instrumentalist Max Thomas. Max is also a blur. All accordion and barked
vocals. The energy is palpable. Must be something in the Thomas genes, still if
your Dad is Party George it’s inevitable.
Dan is a major talent and a superb singer. The quality
of his songwriting is evident for all to see. As is his permanent grin
throughout the gig.
Latest addition to the band is Scott Milsom on double
bass. He’s slid into the Lister fold nicely. Flinging his instrument around as
if it’s nothing. Have you felt the weight of those things!? Along with Thom
Mills on drums they are a rhythm section to match any. Finally stage right is
guitarist Sam Brace. He manages to join in the madness whilst never missing a
lick and still remaining the epitome of cool. It’s a gift. (Great shirt too).
I saw Skinny Lister play the same room 2 years ago to
somewhere between 30 – 40 people. It was a great gig. The band still delivering
their high powered set and the crowd still managed to polish the flagon off. To
see them now playing to a sell out crowd, all there for a singalong party was,
well, emotional. I have to confess to shedding a tear. By the time the flagon
reached me this time it was empty. Why is the rum always gone? Didn’t stop me
holding it aloft as the band delivered the greatest singalong song ever in John
Kanaka.
We get a 23 song set spread out over the three albums.
Five off Forge, eight from Deptford Broadway and nine from The Devil. We even
get a brand new song with Thing Like That as Dan gets political for a change. I
spoke to him after the gig. “I don’t want to be Billy Bragg but certain events
you just can’t ignore”.
They kick off with Wanted, the opening track from The
Devil, The Heart & The Fight and it was none stop for the rest of the
night. Often the band are drowned out by the raucous Sheffield crowd. Skinny
Lister don’t mind. More than any band I’ve seen Skinny Lister make sure that
we’re all part of the gig. It’s a night of mutual wild abandonment. The only
other act I’ve seen come close to this is stablemate Frank Turner.
It’s hard to pick out highlights in fact I’m not gonna
try. It was 90 minutes of bliss. Special mention for show closer Six Whiskies
though. It’s a perfect ending. I’m wrapped in a mass hug with people I’ve never
met before, all word perfect and wonderfully out of tune. It was a drunken
singalong without the drunk bit. That’s how Skinny Lister make you feel.
If you love live music you have to see Skinny Lister.
I can’t put it any more simply than that.
Set
List
Wanted
George's Glass
Tragedy In A Minor
Colours
Cathy
Geordie Lad
Devil in Me
Injuries
Thing Like That
What Can I Say
Charlie
Bold as Brass
John Kanaka
Rollin' Over
Trouble on Oxford Street
Seventeen Summers
Fair Winds & Following Seas
This Is War
Bonny Away
Forty Pound Wedding
Encore:
Beat It From the Chest
Hamburg Drunk
Six Whiskies
