MAGNUM
The Brook, Southampton, UK - 2nd November 2009
Line-up: Magnum + Liberty Lies
Review by Jon Wilde, (crappy phone) pics by Jon Wilde
Ah Magnum. There's just something innately loveable about the veteran English rockers. I've never been massively into their music, but I've always had this indescribable soft spot for them. Therefore, it seemed rude not to take the opportunity to catch them on their latest tour.
Their 2009 jaunt has seen them traversing Europe, taking in several gigs in both Sweden and Germany, plus more in Italy, Switzerland, Spain and Portugal. The tour at present finishes with more than a dozen gigs across the UK. The Southampton show is about halfway through the UK stint, and I'd already heard good reports from their show in Pontypridd in Wales. There's nothing like knowing a band are on top form on the nights leading up to a concert you are seeing...!
But before that, there was the small matter of the support act. Their name was Liberty Lies, and they apparently hail from somewhere in the deeply-accented English Midlands. Before the gig I had a quick listen to the samples on their MySpace site. To be fair they sound, if not awful, then certainly not great. Lead singer Shaun has a flat voice and the musicianship is okay if uninspiring. I almost didn't bother turning in time to see them. Fortunately, I did.
If ever there was a case of a band's demo tracks not doing them justice this was it. Shaun actually has a quality voice with heaps of power behind it. He spent most of the gig trying to communicate with an unnecessarily rude and unimpressed throng. It was partially his fault - he has little mastery of crowd control and didn't seem to work out that telling people when to clap and where to look doesn't work - but he still got a raw deal.
Most impressive members of the band were the lightning quick Stevo on drums, and Matt multitasking on bass and keyboard. The guitarists - Josh and Dan - are not without talent either. Overall, this is a band that needs to work on their stagecraft and audience interaction, and more importantly they need to get songs on their MySpace page that better represent what they are capable of. Yes, I know the songs on there at present are 'rough mix' versions, but you don't get the chance to tour with a band like Magnum every week, so more effort on the little things would surely pay dividends.
All in all their stint was better than the audience gave credit for, and I look forward to catching them again sometime in the future when they've had more chance to refine their art.
On next was the main event. By this time - half nine-ish - The Brook had gotten so full all 6ft 5 of me (in my heels...) was struggling to see the stage. The gig was sold out, which of course is brilliant news for the bands and the venue, but it's not so good for people who actually want to see what's going on. Between you and me it was a bit of a middle-aged sausage fest as well... Fortunately, Magnum are more focused on the pure musical experience than any sort of Alice Cooper style stage show, so the cramped conditions weren't as much of a problem as they otherwise might have been.
Listening to Magnum is a surreal experience. They don't do heavy, they don't do light, they don't do fast and they don't really do slow. They have this style somewhere in the middle of a fantastical nowhere built on solid hard rock, mysterious musings and dwarven magic. It's rock to listen to whilst wearing a velvet jacket, sitting in a pleated leather armchair in a gentlemen's club in Rivendell. It hits the spot without getting the blood boiling or the ear drums moaning. If they play rock music in Heaven, it'll sound something like this.
Lead singer Bob Catley has a voice like beech-smoked double cream. He's as smooth as teflon coated Galaxy chocolate and as gentle as a cottonwool-clad rubber ball. The way he describes every song with his storyteller's hand gestures is simply brilliant too. You could probably tell what he's singing just by watching him.
The fact Bob Catley looks a bit like my Nan, circa 1990, guitarist Tony Clarkin and ex-Thunder drummer Harry James look like evil Rob Halford father and son clones, and bass player Al Barrow and keyboardist Mark Stanway were hidden from my view for the entire gig didn't matter.
It was great to finally hear 'Vigilante' live, and the tracks from highly regarded new album Into the Valley of the Moonking got a good showing too. The crowd were suitably enthusiastic, especially one perm-headed lady at the front who looked so captivated by Bob's vocals I thought she was about to pop.
This was a classy gig. It wasn't blow-you-away exciting, it was just spot on. Nothing more. Nothing less. And that is plenty good enough for me.
http://www.magnumonline.co.uk/
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