After such a brilliant album in ‘Live 1’, the only sensible thing to do was release ‘Live 2’! This features the same line-up as the debut, but musically they have spread themselves wider in that we get two songs from ‘Lamb’ right up to ‘OVO’, all of them played with the same care and delicacy that made the debut album such a delight. I am generally not a fan of tribute bands, but I can’t even think of these guys as such as they are playing the music with such love and vitality that it is all-consuming. Just listen to “Moribund The Burgermeister” to see what I mean as it shifts from delicacy and superb percussion through to a rock number with ease.
I could listen to this album all day, as the songs have real life and passion, and that’s what makes them so immediate and essential. One can hear the audience getting restless when they hear the piano introduction to “Lamb”, as if they are wondering is this really going to be performed? Then when Jerry hits those cymbals they know it’s a reality, and Brian sneers his way through the song, giving Rael a much greasier edge than he used to have. I’ve discovered that I can’t play this album without smiling all the time, as it is just so much fun with classic songs being given a new lease of life by musicians who are not only masters of everything they touch, but also care about the music very much indeed. I know that it is unlikely that these guys will ever play down in my neck of the woods (although Hackett is here later this year, so anything’s possible), so until I get to see them live I’ll have to keep playing these two albums and enjoying them immensely.
