LIVE REVIEW & GALLERY: Frank Turner @ UEA LCR, Norwich & O2 Academy, Leeds
Norwich: 01/10/22
Leeds: 02/10/22
Support from Truckstop Honeymood & PET NEEDS
I want to start this review a little off topic. I decided to attend the gig in full 90's/Y2Y get up. Some of the widest jeans I've owned in 20 years, retro Reebok tee and massive platform trainers that I'd spent nearly all day almost falling off. Standing in the queue I listen to all my Britpop favourites and by the time I got in the venue I fully believed it was 2001 and I was about to watch Mansun on their "Little Kix" tour!
With the realisation I was definitely not 17 again and Mansun had disbanded some 2 decades ago it was back to the present day and on with the show!
Kicking off the night were Truckstop Honeymoon hailing from Louisiana via Kansas. Their unique blend of Rockabilly with a country edge was both entertaining and endearing. The set was pieced together with storytelling, reminiscing, comedic moments and the notion it was an "education show" where the crowd were encouraged to ask questions.
Husband and wife duo Mike and Katie have charisma and personality by the bucket load. I found myself enjoying the between song tales of hurricane Katrina, Dolly Parton's sleeve tattoos and how Katie wanted to move to France after they toured there just as entertaining as the music itself.
I'd given them a listen prior to the gig and wasn't sure they were going to be my thing. I don't normally enjoy country-esque music but their live performance was a vibrant toe tapper. The kinds of songs where even though you've never heard them before they have a familiar sound like they've been staples on your playlists for years. The lighthearted banjo or acoustic guitar coupled with the double bass was really charming and each song sounded like a friend telling you a story.
The couple told us how they'd been in the industry 20 odd years, raised a family on the road and put out some 10 albums. It was easy to see Mike and Katie were long time pro’s as everything about their stage presence oozed class and confidence. I enjoyed every moment of their set and would definitely go and see them again.
In total contrast to the gentile sound of Truckstop Honeymoon next up we had Essex's finest PET NEEDS who burst on the stage to Art Brut's 'Formed a Band' and from the first note filled the stage both with personality, pure punk sounds and some of the best jumps I've seen.
I've seen PET NEEDS before and have become quite a fan so knew what to expect. I don't think I've seen a live band with more energy. Singer Johnny doesn't stay still, how he manages to put on that kind of show night after night is beyond my comprehension! Watching the photographers trying to capture every moment was quite amusing. I'm sure they mostly just got lots of blurry out of focus images.
There was raucous riffs, full punk attitude, mic stand swinging, jumping off stage and some of the tightest jeans I've ever seen! PET NEEDS while bursting with swagger are also incredibly likeable lads with humble down to earth personalities. The band confessed they'd formed with the intention of just writing songs to play to their mates but decided to write an album during the pandemic which led to them being picked up by Xtra Mile Recordings meaning in January they all handed in their notice to their stable secure jobs to do music full time. It feels like the right decision because they've just put out their second album, toured the States with Frank and are about to embark on their own headline tour. Camp PET NEEDS is going from strength to strength and I hope it continues.
The set was a nice mix of their older material and stuff from the new record. I must admit I've not had a chance to listen to "Primetime Entertainment'' yet but that didn't affect my enjoyment. They're the sort of band where it doesn't matter if you've never heard a single song; everything about their live show is infectiously likeable and they are a joy to watch. My favourite 'Tracy Emin's Bed' was a definite crowd pleaser and I couldn't resist a fist pump as the chorus. 'Punk Isn't Dead (It's Just Up For Sale)' is another absolute stonker live! They even have a high energy track about a washing machine repair man 'As the Spin Cycle Span'.
Watching the crowd its clear PET NEEDS have amassed themselves a bit of a cult following. Lot's of PET NEEDS tee's milling around the venue and a core of at least 20 people who were word perfect on every song, even the new ones.
They're fast, they're frantic, their stage show is full pace, full of passion, perfect punk and I absolutely love them. Bold statement as it was Frank Turner's gig but for me PET NEEDS stole the show!
On to Frank Turner, now I must admit this is another situation where I thought I was a moderate fan but as the gig went on I realised I basically knew nothing. In fact I will confess I don't think there was a single song in the set I could sing along to. I knew the albums "Love Ire and Song" and "Poetry of the Deed" fairly well at the time they were released but unfortunately they fell off my radar long ago. I listened to and reviewed FTHC but it's not really featured in my listening since so this was an interesting gig to review. I’ve watched a lot of smaller bands where I only know one or two songs but it's a very different experience going to a big sold out gig surrounded by mega fans and not really knowing what you're listening to.
That all said I enjoyed the show, Frank's a very charismatic entertainer who has the knack of endearing himself to even a non fan.
There was lots of encouragement for the crowd to participate but the rule of "don't be a dick" echoed throughout the night. At various points Frank prompted circle pits and singalongs. He often referred to the crowd as "friends" and the whole set had a real warmth to it. It certainly didn't feel like a famous person going through the motions to get his pay cheque at the end, it felt as humbling and personable as many of the smaller bands I've seen.
Unfortunately for the most part I'm not going to be able to name drop songs as I simply don't know them (I feel ashamed!) but it was a set full of big riffs, thrashy drums, chanty foot stomping choruses and big punk vibes with folkish tendencies.
Frank, like both the other two acts is a great storyteller and the set was bound together with stories and memories preceding each song. He spoke of his wife a lot throughout the set but admitted she wasn't at the Norwich show as she has better things to do that follow him around.
'Little Life', which is a song about him moving to Essex during the pandemic, was upbeat with a darker edge and progressive feel.
I noted an awful lot of Frank's song start more lo-fi and understated before punking it up as they go into the bridge or chorus for example 'If I Ever Stay'
I didn't find the set to be as heavy as I expect, he has certainly move a long way from his heavy Million Dead days, although there was a nod to this era of Frank's career when he played a hardcore track lifted from his latest record and taught the crowd how to dance to hardcore punk.
His song's deal with a lot of sadness and grief with one song (I'm unsure of the name) being about his friend Scott from Frightened Rabbit who took his own life. Frank explained the track was a way to remember his friend's life not the way it ended. It was a quieter, more pensive number with lots of heavy bass.
While the set was fairly upbeat and danceable the between track conversations gave us a real insight into the meaning and the pain behind each word. I don’t think a single song was introduced as being about a really positive subject matter.
During the gig Frank referred to his touring crew as family saying at one point if it wasn't for them everyone on the stage would be sat there like confused children wondering why the tour hadn't started. He even thanked the UEA staff and prompted the crowd to give them a cheer.
There was an acoustic section, which I'm not always a fan of but it worked well. He played 'Tell Tale Sign' a song he said he had not performed live in ages and had forgotten to practice. It was a lovely, gentle, ballad-ish track but I did feel it lost the casual fans, the people behind me stopped paying attention at all and started having a rather loud conversation about something totally unrelated.
'Fastest Way Back Home' was a beautiful love song he said he’d written years ago. He told us it isn't about his wife but he meant it at the time. I'd never heard the song before but it was probably my favourite of the night which is strange as love songs aren't normally my thing.
During the acoustic portion he talked of his backing band "The Sleeping Souls" again referring to them as friends admitting he'd be nowhere without them. He told the audience to give them a massive cheer as they came back on during the next song to which everyone obliged.
Next was a cheery, sunshine song that I'm sad I don't know the name of as I loved its likeable energy and happy demeanor.
During 'Polaroid' the crowd, even those standing around the sides or near the bar were prompted to jump and go mad, which at least half the room did.
The set "ended" on chanty fan favourite with lots of energy and fist pumping.
They went off only to come back less than two minutes later. We already know how I feel about encores, what's the bloody point! They blasted through more songs I didn't know and after a couple I decided to bail to embark on my two taxis and a bus mission home! The Leeds encore however was far more eventful than ours with riddled with technical issues leading to a smashed guitar and destroyed mic stand1
Overall it was a great gig, Frank has a lovely warm personality albeit I did think he maybe talked just a little too much. He makes everyone feel welcome and like an equal which I have massive respect for. There's clearly a very loyal fanbase, I heard people on my bus home talking of how they'd also seen him in Manchester. As a very casual fan I really enjoyed it but I definitely think the most enjoyment comes when you know at least some of the set.
The only real disappointment for me is that he didn't play my two favourites 'The Road' and 'Long Live the Queen' which I know he'd played earlier in the tour but with Norwich being show two thousand three hundred and something I guess he'd drive himself mad if he played the same set every night.
Scott's thoughts from the Leeds show:
This was my 2nd time shooting Frank, the first being the album launch for FTHC that I arrived a little later than planned to and with no photo pit took a hand full of photos and then just watched the gig.
It was also my 4th time seeing him live.
There's something about Frank's music and lyrics (if you can keep up with the speed of delivery). He always tells a story and as far as I'm aware it's always from personal experience. They cover some pretty dark places yet his music is not dark. It's bouncy fist pumping "fuck yeah" punk rock.
But then he refers to the crowd as friends, crew as family. Don't be a dick and 'Be More Kind'.
It's almost a contradiction and a paradox but it works so well you almost forget the darkness in there.
Great gig with great support bands. Go check out PET NEEDS, you'll not be disappointed!
Review & Truckstop Honeymoon photos by Amy Gee @ LCR UEA, Norwich on 01/10/22
PET NEEDS & Frank Turner photos by Scott Smith (https://www.scottsmithphotography.co.uk) @ O2 Academy, Leeds on 02/10/22
