Kate Nash Gig Review | Manchester Academy 1 - November 5 2007
I have already detailed in quite graphic language my love for Kate Nash… I want to marry her. And so it was with a skip in my heart that I went to see her in all her glory at Manchester Academy 1 on Monday November 5th.
When the tickets came up for sale, I had to choose between the gig and a fireworks display, this being Guy Fawkes night and all. I made the right decision as Kate Nash provided all the fireworks I needed to see this year, and sang gorgeously as an added bonus.
The support acts for the night were ‘Blah Blah Blah’ and ‘Metronomy’. I missed the first act (that’s why I’m writing a blog rather than working for the NME) but did catch Metronomy in all their weird but strangely addictive glory.
Like a cross between Kraftwerk and a synchronised swimming team, they stand on stage like a trio of robotic limpets. The songs are mostly instrumental with the odd singing performance thrown in here and there. Wearing lights on their chest and turning them on and off was their idea of a light display but it kind of worked, keeping the crowd’s attention long after many support acts would have lost them. You can check out their MySpace page here.
So on to the main event: the delectable Kate Nash herself. From the moment her album ‘Made of Bricks’ was released, I’ve wanted to see her in the flesh and I wasn’t disappointed. She and her band came out to the album intro ‘Play’ and the setlist pretty much stuck to material off of her debut.
When a Cockney accent doesn’t get roundly booed on a Manchester stage you know you’re doing something right, so when Kate’s opening comment of “It’s well cold innit” got a positive response, I knew she’d be fine. The parlance with the crowd carried on throughout, with Kate drawing the audience’s attention to various Nash wannabes and die hards who had brought various pieces of memorabilia. From the skeleton being held aloft during the song ‘Skeleton’ to the bottles of ‘Mouthwash’ being waved during ‘Mouthwash’, nothing went by without a mention.
She opened with Mariella, but had some technical difficulties which meant no-one heard half of her performance during the song. They were sorted by the next one though, and didn’t plague us any more. The highlights were the back to back renditions of ‘Foundations‘ and ‘Mouthwash‘, her two singles to date, both of which had the crowd singing almost every word back to her on stage.
There was also a fantastic solo acoustic performance of ‘Birds’, not my favourite song on the album, but one which worked really well in this setting.
Kate seemed to really be enjoying the show, and her enthusiasm meant the crowd responded positively throughout. Her singing was top notch, her band were awesome, complimenting her without overdoing it, and she looked gorgeous (as always).
The Academy seemed the perfect size for her, not too small, and not too big. If she gets phenomenally successful and starts playing any bigger venues, I think her sound would get lost in the crowd noise.
A great gig, and one which prompted us to get home and put the album on again straight away. This girl is going places, and it’s definitely up.
Tags: Blah-Blah-Blah, British, Cockney, Fireworks, gig, Guy-Fawkes, Kate Nash, Kraftwerk, manchester, Metronomy, NME, UK
1 opinion for Kate Nash Gig Review | Manchester Academy 1 - November 5 2007
Lucy Holmes
Dec 25, 2007 at 6:56 pm
This was ages ago I’m not sure why I’m leaving a comment now…
But what a brilliant gig it was!
I was part of those “die-hards” by the way, we had a skeleton in the car after halloween and put it in my bag not actually thinking of what was to come. (We also had a witch’s hat and bloody dagger…)
Was just so funny when she noticed it. I’m only 5″2 I’m amazed she saw it.
It was the perfect venue for her definitely.
Shame she’s playing the apollo next year.
Ain’t gonna stop me though.
Way too good to miss she is.
xX
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