Supergrass - October
LORNA MARSH UEA LCR, Norwich
LORNA MARSH
> UEA LCR
Supergrass aren't a band to rest on the laurels of their former glory days, thankfully.
Though they never quite achieved the same status as their Britpop peers it would have been all too easy last night to recycle the old crowd pleasers from a decade ago. Yet despite the decidedly 90s-nostalgia dressed crowd the band gambled with set dominated by new material.
Its one that paid off and proved that Supergrass can still give one of the best live performances around as well as churn out the goods.
The capacity crowd instantly turned into a seething mass the moment the first chords broke on risky gambit Tales of Endurance (Part 4, 5, 6).
Most Read
- 1 Broads Authority moves to prosecute pub over caravans - again
- 2 A47 reopens after it was closed for six hours due to crash
- 3 See inside this idyllic family home up for sale with NO nearby neighbours
- 4 Former coastal restaurant up for auction
- 5 EXCLUSIVE: The faces behind City's prospective US investment
- 6 Thousands expected to attend huge four-day steam extravaganza
- 7 Where you can see the Red Arrows over Norfolk today
- 8 M&S to close 32 stores as part of move away from town centres
- 9 Motorcylist in 50s in hospital with serious injuries after tyre shop crash
- 10 Multiple fire crews tackle farm blaze overnight
And that followed up by Rush Hour Soul and the band ricochet their way through an electrifying set littered with songs from their latest album Road to Rouen and its predecessor, the under rated Life on Other Planets.
Sad Girl proved they could be contemplative without being dull and Grace is a watermark of the band's infectious quirkiness.
While some of the weaker new songs only sparked a polite response compared to established favourites like The Sun Hits The Sky, the mix cemented the band's place as a perennial punchy pop act even in the face of current crown-bearers The Killers and the Kaiser Chiefs.
As last night's performance showed it is often difficult to see why Supergrass haven't been recognised for their longevity and quality as many others like them.
Maybe they are not solemn enough but for a crowd force-fed on brooding British bands their sheer energy is a shot in the arm.
Performances like this, along with the band's staying power prove they are not the one-dimensional cartoon characters Steven Spielburg once wanted to make them. Thank goodness they didn't succumb.