Ian Brown has produced three surprisingly fine solo albums since the demise of the hugely influential late 80s Manchester band The Stone Roses, so the thought of him appearing at the UEA seemed appealing.
Ian Brown has produced three surprisingly fine solo albums since the demise of the hugely influential late 80s Manchester band The Stone Roses, so the thought of him appearing at the UEA seemed appealing.
However things do not always translate well when played live. For me, that was the case with much of Saturday's concert.
His fans punched the air, sang along and shouted his name and Brown responded by striking up charismatic poses and conversations.
Sadly, however, much of the subtlety of songs like Gravy Train and Bubbles from last year's impressive Music Of The Spheres was lost in an appalling bass-heavy sound mix and his voice mixed down and distorted.
A vibrant and lively version of F.E.A.R. lifted things as did Dolphins and Monkeys and the anthemic My Star. But, for me, it was mostly disappointing.
There is no doubt that he is a great front man and has produced some good albums since The Roses but on Saturday, hindered by a terrible sound mix which was not his fault, subtlety was lost and melody buried.
After the gig people queued up hoping to catch a glimpse of a legend.
I will remember the experience for who we had just seen rather than what we had just heard.
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