Last night I went to see The Wedding Present perform "George Best" in its entirety at the Concorde II in Brighton. I went with M, a friend from Worthing, and we met up at the venue. Normally we might have a pint or two before the gig, but I was feeling a little delicate due to over-imbibing the night before, and we are going back to the Concorde today to see The Wedding Present again, so we took it easy.
I left work at 5pm, which was probably a little later than I normally would on a Friday, but I had a call with someone in the U.S. at 4:30, so it worked out well. Normally I wouldn't accept calls at that time on a Friday, but it suited. I wandered along to McDonald's and had my traditional pre-gig dinner. I did briefly consider going elsewhere for dinner, but where else would I get something that is vaguely filling for £7.50? So I ordered a Big Mac Meal and six chicken nuggets and tucked in.
From there I wandered slowly through town, down to the seafront, and sat and looked out at the sea. It is quite awesome, watching the sea. It stretches out to the horizon, moving and heaving mindlessly and endlessly, wave after wave, never ending or changing. Staring at the sea and appreciating its vastness often reminds me that any concerns or problems I might have don't amount to much in the grand scheme of things. Some people (politicians, celebrities) may benefit from the same sort of reflection, maybe? Just a thought.
Anyway, I met M outside the venue, he changed his ticket up for a wristband, and we wandered in. I saw a big chap who I thought looked like John Robb, but thought nothing more of it, and we went to the bar. As we were getting the drinks in, I asked if he had seen The Membranes before; they were the support band. M had seen them at a New Year's Eve shindig back in '97 or '98, and he said "they're fronted by John Robb, of course, I remember him being very... energetic". Ah, so that would explain the presence of John Robb then...
The Membranes came on at 7:30, as advised, and were okay. I'd not seen them before, or heard any of their stuff. They were punk, but they had the BIMM choir onstage with them - they were trying something different. I did think at one stage they were a bit "prog/punk", if such a thing exists...? The music was quite loud and gothic, and because the external door was open and it was daylight, the effect was a bit jarring.
Then it was time for The Wedding Present. They played a couple of songs to warm us up before getting to the main event. I think "Love Slave" was one, and "Deer Caught in the Headlights" was another, which I enjoyed with its "DUM DUM" double bass drum rhythm. They played a couple of tracks from "Going, Going..." and then launched into the album tracks. I really enjoyed the performance, despite not knowing the album that well. Of course the album opens with "Everyone Thinks He Looks Daft", which I did know, and I really enjoyed "Shatner" too. I like that early Weddoes sound, and the lyrics are always interesting in a conversational way. We did think that maybe because they had been playing "George Best" recently they might not give it 100%, but there were no worries on that front. The band certainly were getting into it, and it looked like Gedge was really dishing out the treatment to his guitars. They finished with a rousing version of "Kennedy" which incited some serious moshing, and then it was all over. Another enjoyable show from the semi-legendary (Gedge's own words) The Wedding Present.
We stopped for a couple of pints at The Queen's Head before getting on the train, and after a bit of street theatre (a drunken row between a couple of kids) we were home safe and sound. It was time to go to bed, to get a good night's sleep before going back and doing it all again today.
TTFN.
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