[ November 15, 2003 ]
BBC: Nottingham Review
bbc.co.uk
Royal Concert Hall Nottingham 11/15
November 2003
by Neil Heath
Courtesy of Julia Grant
The Beautiful South made their first performance in Nottingham for over ten years - lets hope they don't leave it that long next time.
Q: First things first, who were the support act and what were they like?
A: Magnet. One man and his guitar/synthesizer. A one man band sort of thing. His name was Evan and he sounded a bit like Thom Yorke - a strange support act for a jolly band like the Beautiful South.
Q: What was the crowd's reaction like?
A: He got a good response, he's clearly talented - but like I say unusual choice of support.
Q: On to the BS, define their audience.
A: That's difficult. You can't define the crowd. There were children, teenagers and embarrassing dads (who danced like courting hippos) all under one roof, can any other band bring all those generations together?
Q: Why do you think that is?
A: I guess it's because you can't really pigeonhole The BS; what are they? Pop, indie, easy listening? They're a band that will never really be 'cool' to admit to liking, for example lead singer Paul Heaton, wore some kind of pom pom hat and Dave Hemingway wore a deerstalker and danced like one of the aforementioned dads - is that cool?
Q: No. So they got a good response?
A: Absolutely. There were people in the midst of hysteria when the band walked on. Plus they have a new female singer Alison Wheeler - who, bizarrely, sounded like both previous female lead singers. She got a round of applause after each line of 'Little Time' - like they do on 'Stars in their Eyes'. It seemed to give her a buzz - it was a welcome to the family type of thing.
Q: Did they play all the old stuff?
A: Yeah most of it including: Old Red Eyes, Carry on Regardless, Little Time and some of their new material. One of my favourites Dumb, was missing though, which was a shame.
Q: What was the highlight?
A: A rousing performance of 36D got the crowd going and Carry on Regardless in the first interval left everyone with a smile on their face. They also did a cover of SClub 7's 'Don't Stop Moving' which was, actually, a pleasant surprise.
Q: So you're going to start listening to SClub?
A: Never! It was one of those novel moments like when Travis did Britney's 'Hit Me Baby One More Time' - You see it's cool now because a proper band have done a cover of it. Just wait until Oasis do a cover of Westlife's 'Flying Without Wings'.
Q: You're so fickle.
A: Thanks.
Q: Anything else to add?
A: It was a perfect pop concert. A great show, lots of fun and BS's songs are some of the best pop that this country has ever produced - long live the Beautiful South. 5/5
Delores / Link to Here
[ November 7, 2003 ]
Express and Star: Gaze for Lady Wheeler
Express and Star
Fix a Gaze for South's 'Lady'
Nov 7, 2003
By Pete Carroll
Courtesy of Julia Grant
She'd been on the fringes of the music business for more than a decade - so when the call came to join of the UK's favourite bands, Alison Wheeler didn't need a second invitation.
"I must have thought about it for about a nanosecond before saying yes," she says recalling the time when she was asked to join the Beautiful South.
She was 'discovered' by band member Dave Hemingway after working on a solo project of his as part of a gospel choir.
She had also been a member of melodic indie female trio Virginia who were once memorably described as "Crosby, Stills & Nash - only with better legs."
In addition to this she was working in the marketing department of BMG Records and taking every session singing opportunity that came her way.
Hemingway asked if he could put her forward to join the band two years ago and she had all but given up hope that the offer would come good. Then she received a call out of the blue in January asking if she was still interested.
"I've learned now that time scales in musicians' terms are completely different."
She took a holiday and on her return found a tape and letter from Paul Heaton asking her to go and meet the band.
"They already knew what I sounded like - I think it was just a case of seeing if I could get on with the rest of the band, because that's important to them."
She joined officially in April and, after just three weeks' rehearsal, began work on The Beautiful South's new album Gaze. Then the video for the new single was filmed and the band kicked off their latest UK tour on Wednesday.
"After 12 years of trying suddenly everything was going at double speed."
Alison, already dubbed 'Lady' Wheeler because she has a degree in law and Japanese from Cambridge University and prefers gin to beer, is a seasoned performer and has no qualms about playing the larger venues that the band are capable of filling.
"We've done a few warm-up shows and they have really helped me fell part of the band."
Delores / Link to Here
|
