Leeds Music Scene - March 2006

Hifi Club 10/03/06 Gig review

Reviewed by: Ben Smith

Web Site:  www.leedsmusicscene.co.uk

A packed HiFi on Friday night was the perfect place to preview two of the bands that will be attracting a lot of interest this year, Loudmouth Soup and King Creosote.

Bringing a slice of americana to their fore, Loudmouth Soup's sound shows strong country influences like The Band and Ryan Adams' more untempo moments. Their songs are introduced with a welcome wry humour, and they quickly have the crowd in their thrawl with songs like Skydiver and Let Your River Flow proving particularly popular. That the venue was already full long before they arrived on stage gives an indication of the buzz they are attracting.

King Creosote have been slowly building a reputation on the thriving Scottish folk scene for the last few years as part of the Fence Collective. Kenny Anderson's band now appear to be moving swiftly into the spotlight and have been attaining critical and popular acclaim. Tonight there seemed a buzz around HiFi like they were about to witness something special. And they weren't disappointed. Bringing his band onstage to No-one Bit Ashamed, Kenny Anderson delivered a set mixed with upbeat jaunty folk like You Are Could I mixed with more sombre moments. Managing to blend elements of folk and alt-country, a diverse crowd were equally charmed and were cheering demanding for more by the time their set was closed.

Both bands managed to negate the HiFi's unfair reputation for difficult acoustics and filled the room with their sound. The night was a great success for all concerned.