The Twilight Sad, Rough Trade, Nottingham

When the Twilight Sad came on the scene their gigs were an unrelenting sea of guitar noise, feedback and pounding drums all played so loud that it pinned you to the back wall of whatever venue you happened to be in. Amongst it all though they also had a ear for a great melody and they also had James Graham’s amazing voice.

Over the years, and through their four albums and numerous EPs, they have mellowed. Their sound is less aggressive, they use a lot of synthesizers now, and their demeanour less, well ‘sad’ although still decidedly dark. Yet despite this even moderate mainstream success still eludes them.

Now we have album number five ‘It Won/t Be Like This All the Time’ which not only eschews an apostrophe but also a launch tour that includes the full band. Instead we have a few ‘stripped back’ acoustic dates chucked in free with the album purchase which involves only James Graham and guitarist Andy MacFarlane. 

Although the guys have set up an amplifier they ask if it’s ok if they do it without which is about as stripped back as you can get. That’s fine by us and it’s a fair assumption there’s going to be no one pinned to the back wall tonight. In fact, who’d have though ten years ago that you’d be able to stand right in front of the band without feeling your ears bleed.

It’s also a bonus to be able to make out every word of the songs and get a better sense of why Graham immerses himself so much into them.

They play ten songs tonight, five of which come from the new album which they have worked on with the Cure’s Robert Smith although that probably isn't too obvious acoustically. This includes the amazing ‘VTr’ which is as good a tune as anyone will produce this year.

Amongst the new songs are ‘Nobody Wants to Be Here and Nobody Wants to Leave’ from album three, ‘The Room’ from album two and one they claim not to have rehearsed ‘Mapped by What Surrounded Them’ from album one.

To close we are treated to non-album single ‘The Wrong Car’ and the song they all know as ‘Rabbit’ or rather ‘And She Would Darken the Memory’. Sadly some of the audience sing along with every word which for a acoustic show is a bit of a downer because Graham can’t drown them out but it’s kind of sweet I suppose.

In fact the whole thing is rather sweet, which I never thought I’d say about the Sad but it's also totally excellent at the same time. Now please get your ****es back down here with the rest of the band pronto.

The Twilight Sad, Bodega Social Club, Nottingham

Supported by Errors

When I previously saw the Errors at Summer Sundae in 2010 and a few months later at Stealth supporting, guess who, The Twilight Sad, the Errors were an instrumental band. As I said at the time, instrumental just doesn’t do it for me... they needed a vocalist. Well, apparently around about 2012 they found their voice and existing member Steev Livingstone took up the mic. I'm the last to hear, as ever.

Steev’s vocals though aren’t particularly clear and he sort of chants/mumbles his way through track one. I’m not being unkind but I don't think they've quite got the hang of this singing lark yet, perhaps they should advertise. Then out of nowhere they put a call out for Cecelia and young lass hops up onto the stage.

Yep, that does the trick. She does a couple of tracks that hints at a more accessible pop sound and then it's back to Steev for a few more chants. However their last track of just five, I have no idea of its title so I'll call it ‘the last track’, is the best tonight.

The Twilight Sad were once known for the ear shredding decibels they produced on stage but they get quieter each time I see them. Tonight I can stand right in front of singer James Graham with no risk to my ear drums, although he might have an eye out with one of his flailing limbs. Graham, as ever, puts his life and soul into each single track, singing every word as if might be his last.

This short UK tour of just three dates is to tease us with material from their upcoming fourth album ‘Nobody Wants To Be Here and Nobody Wants To Leave’ from which we get six tracks. Opening with newbies 'There's A Girl In The Corner' and 'Last January', then thereafter we get tracks from all three of their other albums interspersed with new material. It’s a perfect Twilight Sad taster session.

Their classics like ‘That Summer, at Home I Had Become the Invisible Boy’, ‘I Became a Prostitute’ and ‘Cold Days From the Birdhouse’ are naturally well received but so too are the excellent ‘Don't Move’ off their last album ‘No One Can Ever Know’ and a rare outing for ‘Walking For Two Hours’ from their seminal debut ‘Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters’.

Sadly all too soon Graham is thanking us polite (yet again) for turning up and the band depart to great applause.

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The Twilight Sad, Stealth, Nottingham

Supported by Childhood

It was supposed to be a three band performance tonight but Let’s Wrestle cancelled last night’s London show due to illness and they don't make tonight's either. Their loss is Childhood’s gain who are promoted to main support and a later slot.

They are, I believe, Nottingham based Londoners. It doesn’t start too well for them, the sound is muddy, but it’s soon sorted. At first, I think, typical indie. Could have been anyone. Probably were. Then they get a bit of a jangle going. Hmmm, quite nice. Catchy. Pleasant. Very clever at times. They steadily win me and everyone else over. In the end we're all sad to see them finish.

Play.com are refusing to send me The Twilight Sad’s new album 'No One Can Ever Know'. It only came out last Monday, yet they are saying it is out of stock. How can that be? Amazon already hate me and it seems perhaps now that Play do too. A few months ago, they refused to give me three downloads that I’d ordered. They never did say why, although they did refund me, presumably downloads can’t be ‘out of stock’?

So I’m ‘unrehearsed’ for tonight’s gig at Stealth, which as Nottingham’s ‘musical Mecca for dance fans’ is again an unlikely place to see them. It’s almost as if someone is trying to keep them under the radar.

Learning from past experience I opt to stand well back, in what, I hope, is a more acoustically advantageous position. Beeston. That’s a suburb about three miles outside Nottingham for those that don’t know. The Saddos (may I call them that?) are well known for making an ear reshaping but poetic racket and I may need the use of my eardrums in the next fortnight.

The band take to the smoke encased stage fashionably late and set the tone with the thumping bass and heavy synths of ‘Kill It In The Morning’. Rumour is they’ve gone all Cabaret Voltaire and yes I can see that, with a side dish of industrial phase Depeche Mode perhaps.

The formula is repeated on ‘Don’t Move’, which is almost a pop song. Almost. They’re still loud of course but I think they’ve turned it down a notch or two, or is it just my new position?

With the musicians in the band frequently disappearing into the fog of smoke it’s difficult not to centre your attention on the fascinating individual that is singer James Graham. He stands there, at the centre of it all, delivering his vocals as passionately as ever, eyes closed, seemingly lost in it all. In fact I don’t think it’s until three songs in that he actually opens his eyes and realises we're there. Hello! At which point he explains they’re from up in Scotland, there’s nothing like keeping it general, and thanks us for coming before he submerges himself back into his own little world.

So far the ears are fine but the big test is going to be when they play one of their oldies. Enter ‘That Summer, at Home I Had Become the Invisible Boy’. Which is again glorious but have they toned it down? A little. Enough. Tonight, amidst perhaps a more considered approach, Graham’s voice soars above absolutely everything that the rest of the band can throw at him and you can hear practically every word of the song. The band’s trademark guitar feedback is still there but it seems to occur increasingly at the end of songs and less in the middle.

Then it’s back to the new album, from which they play all but two. Among which there’s the faster pace of ‘Dead City’ and the almost soulful ‘Alphabet’. Sandwiched in between is ‘Reflection of the Television’, which is just so massive tonight. All the old ones, maybe just because they are more familiar, are absolutely epic. The cheery ‘I Became a Prostitute’ is intense. Graham makes it so emotional but then he could probably make having a cup of tea seem emotional.

There’s recent single ‘Sick’ which I haven’t quite got to grips with yet but then there’s also ‘Cold Days From The Birdhouse’, which eases its way in gently and then explodes, taking Stealth with it.

As we head towards the end of a mesmerising hour long set, Graham once more opens his eyes and thanks us again for coming before the band wind the guitars up again for ‘And She Would Darken the Memory’ and finally ‘At The Burnside’. An oldie that I’ve not heard them play before.

With a final fading squall of guitar noise it’s all over. Absolutely brilliant and as a bonus, the ears are fine, still attached. The band may continue to fall under the radar but they don’t seem too bothered, me neither, let’s keep it to ourselves shall we.

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