Friday, 21 June 2013

Beady Eye: Live at the Camden Centre




Beady Eye played their finest London gig to date last night. They are band out to prove they have the chops to be in the game still and boy do they get their point across at the Camden Centre, aka the sauna.

When they toured ‘Different Gear, Still Speeding’, most fans, ourselves included, came away having had a decent night out but were left a touch underwhelmed. The swagger was there but the tunes were not. With the release of ‘BE’, their set is now full of mod-rock classics (‘Face In The Crowd’ & ‘I’m Just Saying’) and rock-psyche meets soul belters in ‘Flick Of The Finger’ and ‘Second Bite Of The Apple’.

‘Flick Of The V’s’ makes so much more sense live, as did many Oasis album tracks over the years (‘Hung In A Bad Place’ & ‘Meaning Of Soul’). Live, this song ceases to be just an interesting album opener and becomes a barnstorming epic which is so hypnotic it is irrelevant whether they play Wembley stadium, the Camden Centre or on a two bob Saturday night talent show because it’s a great song.
The themes of musical redemption and ‘let’s not waste our second chance’ run through Beady Eye’s second album. Human nature will inevitably find this heartrending, especially the lyrics from ‘I’m Just Saying’:
‘I’m feeling fine/ This is my time to shine / It’s nearly but it’s not too late / The Future’s getting underway’.
However, TT finds it odd that Beady Eye band feel this way. If they had made two shocking albums and faded away, they still would have been a part of Oasis, Ride, and Heavy Stereo. They would have played some of the most scintillating rock n roll gigs of all time.

So, this cannot be a case of trying to recapture past glories. Gallagher, Bell and Archer were born to be on stage showing no fear. They are the musical equivalent of Mickey Rourke in ‘The Wrestler’. This gig, the new album ‘BE’, they are their top turnbuckle moment amidst a heart attack. Everyone knows they don’t need to do it. They do it because it makes them feel alive and the other option is God’s waiting room. Fuck that!


PS: they played Rock n Roll Star and ‘Morning Glory’.

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