THE QUIREBOYS | LIVE REVIEW
Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff, Tue 28 Jan
The last time I saw these guys (well, two of them) was in the sold-out Great Hall in 1990, when they were riding high on the crest of a breaking wave that was 80s sleaze metal. Their excellent debut album was bluesy rock perfection, but grunge was sharpening its claws in the wings and they were soon to join others in being usurped by that emerging DIY genre.
Onto 2014, and the London, Edinburgh and Bolton dates sold out well in advance, so it was perhaps an anticlimax for The Quireboys to make their way through the 70 or so punters in Clwb and onto the stage for the first night of their Unplugged And Upfront Tour. Not that it bothered them any, with ageless Geordie frontman Spike raising a pint of cider and gruffly asking how we were all doing.
Although small on numbers, the crowd shuffled forward and offered a loud welcome on a dismal January school night as they opened with Don’t Bite The Hand. What followed was a comprehensive run-through of old faves and new material, most notably from their rather good last album, 2013’s Beautiful Curse.
Once a few sound troubles were ironed out, Spike was in playful mood, adorned as always in his trademark gypsy attire of bandana, pinstripe jacket and carnation. Stories that may or may not have been true included Roses & Rings being dedicated to Tina Turner, who it was originally written for, and Rod Stewart visiting their recording session and berating them for nicking their sound from The Faces.
Guitarist Guy Griffin tweeted before the tour, “hoping people will listen and not yell out for songs we ain’t gonna play… it’s an acoustic show,” so the catcalls for Sex Party were met with a stern rebuttal from him pre-encore. Instead everyone got involved via drunken singing and raised arms for set closer I Don’t Love You Anymore.
The years may have seen them relegated to smaller venues, but they don’t care. The Quireboys are still making decent music and playing it live, and that counts for a lot.
words RYAN HEEGER photo MICHAEL MORGAN