Nottingham was one of the first places outside of Manchester that Inspiral Carpets played, and they returned this month for a show at Rescue Rooms...
Years ago, LeftLion’s predecessor, Overall There Is A Smell Of Fried Onions, put tonight’s support act The Stanleys on, and they were different. They harked back to a golden age of Mancunian and Lancastrian music and could easily have been mistaken for looking like The Chameleons.
They mix a down-to-earth love of 60s and 90s tunes, without parodying anything. They seemed to really enjoy the night, and they’ll be out on tour again in May if you want to check them out for yourself.
Apparently, Nottingham was one of the first places outside of Manchester that Inspiral Carpets played. Showing my age, I was there back then – I was very excited and very drunk that night. Tonight, I was no less excited.
Inspiral Carpets were one of the most innovative and inventive bands of the Manchester scene of the late 80s and 90s. Their first single Joe, which they started with tonight, was produced by Dave Fielding of Manchester legends The Chameleons, who was in the audience.
The expected “moo’s” from the audience encouraged the band on to stage, and the trademark of their classic cow logo loomed large. An Inspiral’s gig is far more than just the music. You could feel the love in the audience and there was a new generation of fans right up there in the front row.
Brilliant and pertinent filmed backdrops to each song making each one an art performance in its own way. The psychedelic jumbling of patterns, images and words, was truly visually inspirational. There was a perfect homage to late member Craig Gill on the bass drum skin, as well as a song and a film on the back scene later in the evening.
Classics such as the already mentioned Joe, This Is How It Feels, and I Want You. They acknowledged that it was an absolute privilege to work with the late iconic Mark E. Smith, who provided guest vocals on the latter of those tracks, a John Peel’s Festive Fifty No. 1. I’d forgotten the seminal Keep the Circle Round and Directing Traffic, something both reminiscent and utterly transcendental.
The band blend 1960s pop with 80s and 90s gritty Lancastrian drama, fears and hopes, and despite this being 30 years ago, it is still relevant today; money, despair, love and hope, universal and eternal themes. Tonight was a sell-out and deservedly so.
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