Reviews
The Pigeon Detectives’ gig in Millennium Square, Leeds
Homecomings seem to be the flavour of this month in Englandand its the North which seems to be holding the most exciting ones.
Ricky Hatton's world title bout at his beloved City of Manchester Stadium and the Kaiser Chief's gig at Elland Road are both close to selling out, with over 40 000 fans expected at each.
The start of this homecoming season' saw Leeds' very own The Pigeon Detectives play two gigs over the Bank Holiday weekend.
Playing at a sold out Millennium Square, over
7,000 people turned up for each night.
The concert was originally supposed to be a one off event but due to the phenomenal demand for tickets a second day was added. After their hit debut album, Wait for Me', was released in May 2007 the band's popularity has escalated rapidly. With a new single and album - Emergency- being released this month, the sky seems the limit for the Rothwell lads.
The Saturday night line up included local band Little Thoughts, The Rascals and Birminghams finest The Twang.
After winning the chance to support the Pigeons, Little Thoughts' fusion of pop and indie was well appreciated by the ever growing crowd.
After performing admirably Little Thoughts were followed on stage by The Rascals. Led by Miles Kane, the Rascals popularity has grown significantly in recent months after Kane's collaboration with Arctic Monkeys front man Alex Turner.
Together, the two front men have started a side band called The Last Shadow Puppets and last week gained the number one album spot with their debut album The Age of Understatement'.
Similarities between the two can be clearly seen, with Kane's on stage persona very similar to that of Turner's.
The style of music played by the Rascals has a definite feel to the Monkeys' second album Favourite Worst Nightmare'.
With an eerie and dark sound, yet energetic at the same time, the Rascals were able to liven up the crowd immensely.
The Twang's stage experience was shown off straight away, as they were able to grab the crowd's attention with constant humour and banter.
After being told two band members went to college in Leeds, the Millennium Square faithful gave a huge rendition of Yorkshire, Yorkshire', something well appreciated by the band.
With the crowd in full voice the Pigeons walked on stage triumphantly in the sunset area.
The new single Emergency' kicked the gig off, however it was the fans' favourites such as Romantic Type', I Found Out' and I Don't Know How To Say Goodbye', which really grabbed the crowd's imagination. Charismatic lead singer Matt Bowman's hyperactive on stage presence saw him break his microphone after the second song. Also a miscommunication between drummer Jimmi Naylor and the rest of the band had Bowman saying we're not the most professional of bands', which brought a huge cheer and laughter from the crowd.
Constant reminders of the new album were added by the band, and a handful of songs were played. Like Wait For Me', Emergency' songs were a short burst of energy and catchy guitar riffs. When a new song was sung the band demanded huge cheers instead of the usual groans which sometimes can occur with new and unknown songs.
The participation and energy from the crowd had obviously taken the band back. Bowman demonstrated his climbing ability, scaling the stage scaffolding to watch the crowd clap in sync to songs.
The mix in crowd between gender and age clearly showed off the widespread appeal of the band and the final rendition of I'm Not Sorry' was a poignant moment and the end to of a fantastic night of entertainment and music.
11:44am Thursday 8th May 2008
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