Live

The Twang, Little Man Tate, Look See Proof

Paul Cook 22/10/2007

Opening to a less than full capacity crowd, young power-poppers Look See Proof kicked off the proceedings with some energetic up-tempo tracks including the latest release “You and Me” with its infectious chorus and rousing blend of riffs and guitar lines. Newest single, “Local Hero” stirred up the most excitement with the crowd and rightfully so. Played with accuracy and stature, Look See Proof fired up the crowd for the follow-up, Little Man Tate.

With a similar exuberance and enthusiasm as Look See Proof and mixing a dab of ska into their poppy sound, Little Man Tate were impressive for a band with little more than a year's professional experience. Crowd-pleasers included new release “Boy in The Anorak” with its slowly-soaring rock riff and “House Party at Boothy's” with it's simple yet catchy punk-pop riff and transcending guitar lines.

However, as one would expect from such an established and decorated band, The Twang shone on the night. With all the power and liveliness of both the support bands put together, Phil Etheridge's NME cover-boys impressed all night long. The Twang's performance at UEA goes a long way in suggesting they are quite possibly one of the most naturally talented live performers in the country right now. The creative chemistry between Etheridge and Saunders on-stage is, in itself, great to watch. Album hits “Either Way”, “Two Lovers” and “Wide Awake” got a great reception with precision and power boosting the crowd's excitement ten-fold.

As the gig went on The Twang simply got better and better, making each and every track sound like a classic. “Ice Cream Sundae” and forthcoming release “Push the Ghost” sounded fantastic with the distinctively distant, echoing guitar lines and rough, emotive accents of Etheridge and Saunders only adding to the catchiness of almost every song. In the encore, recent Radio 1 cover “Drinking in L.A.” went down a treat, perhaps even improving on Bran Van 3000's version with its rousing chorus. A few of the band's older, pre-Love It When I Feel Like This tracks followed before the end of the night. It can certainly be said that the vim and vigour of the acts provided a fantastic night of musical entertainment, recommendable to anyone with good taste.