2nd August 2016

The Brandy Thieves

play The Shed

with Lost No More, Corrupt Nation, The Lids and Jimmy Amnesia.

It was one of those nights; you know the ones – you come away thinking ‘this has got to be the gig of year.’  At least, one of them. Oh yes, for me, this was one for the history books. Tonight had an atmosphere, a feeling that this event was special. It’s not something that happens routinely in gig-going; in fact, it’s rare. Everyone was there; The Shed was full of famous faces – the gigarati of Leicester had turned out for this. Big time. It was a supremely good line-up. Bands that everyone wanted to see. That is why The Shed was full – on a Tuesday night!

The first band to grace the stage was Lost No More. I noticed they have Liam Hopkins from The Fores in the band. A five member pop rock band from Leicester and Northampton. They played a set of original songs and some covers; pleasant tunes with good vocals and afterwards loads of people commented how good they were.

I was pleased to see Corrupt Nation again.

I liked them the last time they played. Every time I have seen them I liked what they do. The vocals of the lead singer – Ben Wilkinson –  are put across with much vitality and enthusiasm. The songs they do – mainly their own – are catchy and burst with rhythms, good tunes delivered with commitment and razzmatazz. Music to make you feel happy. Four young men who just enjoy making good music.

They have made it, as far as Leicester is concerned The Lids have arrived.

Their music has something that had given them a perch at the top of tree.  Music that packs a punch, you can feel the static crackling from the stage. Seeing this band is always an event. Tonight, they had the added bonus of playing to a room crowded with people. Music that has a serrated sharpness and abrupt endings but which sizzles with rhythm.

It was a Saturday night at Duffy’s bar. Back in the middle of May. On stage a band from Leicester who has brought a big crowd of fans in to support them. In the audience was Trevor Cobbe.

After the show Trevor wrote

Another Leicester four-piece who deliver Britpop/Indie Rock, there’s a definite Oasis swagger to frontman Ryan as he leads the band through a fast-paced set of 90s influenced pop, punk, indie songs. The crowd are fully immersed in Jimmy Amnesia’s music and banter and the song Beautiful seems to particularly resonate, perhaps their anthem song. With a midset swap of guitars between the Alexs and then back, the sounds kept pumping out. Another entertaining support to tonight’s headliners, STAY.

[Music in Leicester magazine]

Jimmy Amnesia made it through to the finals of the OBS this year; playing at The Musician on 7th May in a line-up that included a bevy of  top local bands.

Back then I said

I saw Craig Blockley on the drums; I remembered him when he played with The Heroes. Jimmy Amnesia is not a band I know well (it seems they have not played much recently and we missed them in the previous OBS heats.) The band’s set mixed indie, punk and Britpop with rocket-fuelled vocals from Ryan Jensson. It was a high octane set of songs that felt like Oasis in bed with Kasabian, so pretty hot stuff. The band was on the line-up  at the Western Park Festival in 2014.

But tonight they put a big vibe into the room and paid respect to the other bands that had played before them.

Tonight was one of those gigs, you know, one where you can feel the atmosphere, where the excitement and anticipation is palpable. On to the stage comes The Brandy Thieves. Lead vocalist Andrea Kenny begins the set with an a acapella intro before the rest of the band bursts in with those magic sounds, the sounds that have made this band one of Leicester’s most celebrated music groups.

You could tell this was the special attraction of the night because nearly all the audience members had gathered in front of the stage. Around the room many faces of notable people from the world of music here in Leicester. It was the set everybody had been waiting for. We saw them at the recent Simon Says festival on the outdoor stage but for most people they were some distance away. Now in the Shed you get right up close, within touching distance of the musicians; here in the intimacy of this little venue, The Brandy Thieves come alive and you can see them in all their glory.

Tonight, the band put on a storming set, just as you would expect them to. Just as they did at Simon Says. There is Chris Swirls on the drums, a musician who has known the inside of many previous bands.  Bernardo Mendes has left the band.  There is a passion in the music of TBT; a thrilling enjoyable magic to their music that comes alive in their playing and in the sensational performances of Andrea Kenny. As a group they ooze magnetism and energy like few others. Andrea had the audience in the palm of her hand; her singing was exhilarating. And in keeping with their name, Cain Barriskill  hands a full bottle of brandy to the nearest member of the audience and within a few minutes it is handed back emptied.  This was a night to remember; this was a headliner to remember and their last song – you guessed it – a number you would never forget: The Owl and The Pussycat (listen to it on YouTube.)

Just in case you have not had the delight of listening to songs by The Brandy Thieves, you can hear several of them on the band’s Soundcloud page

Flashback

and more

not forgetting

See also:

Our night with Casbah at The Soundhouse

The first day at Simon Says festival

July – we look back at the music of mid summer