King Creosote
It is a cold Tuesday in Norwich and it is off to the cavernous OPEN for King Creosote.
Charlie Cunningham opens proceedings. Solo, with acoustic guitar and a highish voice, he soon warns the audience up. There are shades of Michael Chapman in the finger-picked guitar and Jon Gomm in the guitar-as-cajon percussion. Second song You Sigh has flamenco flourishes whilst the likes of Blindfold and Lights Off are melancholic, folkie songs. Cunningham is engaging, good humoured and is a good way to get things going,
Before tonight, the only time I have seen King Creosote was on the Diamond Mine tour with Jon Hopkins. Based on that and the publicity photos in which Kenny "King Creosote" Anderson is dressed as a particularly scruffy, down-on-his-luck fisherman, I was expecting a stripped back, showmanship free gig. So, it is a surprise to see Kenny backed up by a full band comprising of two keyboard players, drummer, bassist, fiddler, cellist and electric guitarist. It is even more of a surprise – and a welcome one at that - to see members of the band sporting sequinned jackets and even a silver wig with himself in 70s glam-style glitter make-up.
The set is heavily biased towards latest release Astronaut Meets Appleman which is, for me, a good thing. I can’t claim to have heard all, or even most, of his forty-plus albums but it is the best LP that I’ve heard. The songs don’t differ that much from the recorded versions. Wake Up To This is a cracking pop song. Mr Anderson waltzes with a member of the audience during Faux Call but it comes across as a heartfelt move rather than rehearsed showmanship. Rules of Engagement is close to straight folk. Melin Wynt may be missing the bagpipes of the recorded version but still stands out with its driving krautrock beat.
During the encore, a couple of audience members stumble from the back of the room to dance in front of the stage. It may be fuelled by booze, it may be fuelled by a love for King Creosote. Either way, it brings a smile to King Kenny’s face and is a suitable end to the evening. This hasn’t been the most exciting gig I’ve been to, but has been enjoyable in a relaxed, downbeat and melancholy way.
