Late of the Pier @ Leadmill: Saturday, February 7th

Late of the Pier’s dynamic Saturday night set at Leadmill had their (predominantly young) Sheffield fan base - largely clad in a confusing chequered-shirt uniform- whipped into a frothy, animated fury from the first flick of the strobe. Most knew every word and bopped along to a multitude of time signatures coherently. It was hardly surprising that the crowd were so electrified.

This pop quartet from Castle Donington may sound slightly stuffy on their CDs, but give them an excitable audience crammed onto a small dance floor and the transformation of their small but finely-tuned repertoire is startling. The band performed a tireless and exuberant 45 minute workout. The crowd responded by channelling their own excitement and latent energy into an erratic moshing tide, which threatened to sweep away lead singer Samuel Eastgate in his stage-dive finale.

The theatricality of the performance was astounding, and the enjoyment produced was certainly mutual. Eastgate leapt around the stage, intermittently pounding bongos, cymbals and at one point (during a particularly fine rendition of ‘The Bears Are Coming’) an improvised glockenspiel, fashioned from 3 planks suspended from the ceiling. As far as anyone could tell from keyboard maverick Sam Potter’s flamboyant arm-waving, imaginary-orchestra conduction and contorted ‘lost in the music’ expression, he might have been tripping merrily on narcotics – and yet, this is a band which aims to make "Music that makes drugs redundant". Bassist Andrew Faley joined in at times with the synchronised choreography - some of the moves giving the hypnotic quality of a Haka; while drummer Ross Dawson remained almost perpetually convulsed in a head-bashing fit.

What sets the band apart from their self-derided homogenised Indie counterparts is an ability to make music which is both catchy and danceable. With song lyrics as peculiar as their instrumental components (“Get out get out like a trout” from ‘Bathroom Gurgle’), there was something infinitely charming about the conviction with which they were belted out. Late of the Pier have wooed critics and punters alike, and a pigeonhole still remains elusive. While cynicism prevents one from lauding Late of the Pier as ‘the next big thing’, tonight's performance has still proved their effortless ability for infectious hyperactivity, boundless enthusiasm, and dripping hair.


Lucie Boase



Photo: Jon Bergman; source: www.myspace.com/lateofthepier
Late of the Pier @ Myspace
Late of the Pier @ Last.fm