Gig Review
On Tuesday June 9 Noisettes and Mr Hudson played a double header Sony Ericsson Presents Q The Music Club Live at the Hard Rock Cafe ...
See the Mr Hudson and Noisettes gig photos.
Two of Britain’s brightest new talents went head to head at this month’s Sony Ericsson Presents Q The Music Club Live at London’s Hard Rock Café show. In the red corner: suavely-dressed, Kanye West-approved singer-songwriter Mr Hudson. In the blue corner: disco-funk-garage rock upstarts Noisettes.
Opening proceedings to a crowd undaunted by a crippling tube strike, Ben Hudson and his band brought a little sunshine to a grey evening. It’s easy to see why the polished, hip-hop flecked likes of Supernova, from his forthcoming second album Straight No Chaser, have attracted the attention of bigshot rappers such as West, while closer Too Late Too Late remains one of the great unsung pop tunes of the past few years. And he remains the only artist to bring a steel drum onstage with him at the Q The Music Club.
If Mr Hudson sits at the smart, literate end of the pop spectrum, then the Noisettes are an entirely more visceral beast: alternately ferocious, sexy, funky and noisy. Tossing away recent Top 3 hit Don’t Upset The Rhythm two songs in was an admirably bolshy statement of intent, but there was plenty more of the same where that came from.
Their secret weapon is frontwoman Shingai Shoniwa: a pocket size dynamo with enough charisma to power the national grid. When she wasn’t wielding a bass that frankly dwarfed her, she decided to go walkabout in the crowd. At one point, she even perched louchely on the edge a raised table, one part burlesque artist, one part Michelle Pfeiffer in the Fabulous Baker Boys.
The evening came to a close with a slow-burning cover of The Isley Brothers’ classics Summer Breeze and their own Sister Rosetta (Capture The Spirit), before Shoniwa strutted offstage (albeit in the wrong direction). Two great bands, two different sounds, one excellent evening.
Noisettes Setlist:
- Wild Young Hearts
- Don't Upset the Rhythm
- 24 Hours Ago
- Don't Give Up
- Atticus
- Scratch Your Name
- Never Forget You
- Saturday Night
- Summer Breeze
- Sister Rosetta (Capture the Spirit)
See the Mr Hudson and Noisettes gig photos.
Fan Review
Our lucky competition winner won the opportunity to review the gig and interview the band. See below to see what they thought:
The Hard Rock Cafe was treated to some up and coming British talent when
Mr Hudson and the Noisettes took to the stage. Mr Hudson and the Library
supplied some fresh unique sounds with some great vocals. I had seen
them perform before, supporting Kanye West on his tour, and was
excited at the prospect of hearing their new material. I was not let
down with the new release Supernova which also features Kanye West.
The Noisettes were also outstanding with some flamboyant fashion and a
great individual performance from lead singer Shingai Shoniwa. She
embraced the crowd with a bundle of energy at every opportunity. They
also performed a cover version of a Seals and Crofts track Summer
Breeze which complimented their own set of songs. I had a great evening
and can't wait to see both acts in the summer festivals!
- Emma Thompson
User Comments
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I think these guys are a great band. What a great performer. I wish I had been there!
Posted by Jody at | July 22, 2009 15:01
Cosa, cosa? Il mio blog non c'e8e8e8e8e8?Non erano questi gli adrocci... niente mia partecipazione a "Miao Miao Zedong", che avevo anche quasi convinto Alan a scrivere i testi (in cambio di una fornitura di rospi amazzonici detti "rospi del Principe azzurro").... Cmq, di a Puck di non tergiversare troppo sul tuo divano, arrivo con il cane Buck (Rogers... un tempo pensava di fare l'astrocane)... e8 un pittbull... vedete un po' voi..."Miao Miao Zedong a bagno nel Fiume Giallo, come era bello lo sbaaaabordar..."(che ti perdi, che ti perdi...)
Posted by Michell at | October 25, 2012 01:22
Gee whiz, and I tohught this would be hard to find out.
Posted by Ayush at | October 26, 2012 05:54
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