Uriel
09-04-2008, 08:27 PM
Hi All, just popping in to post this. http://www.sandmanmagazine.co.uk/142/06.pdf Check out the next review after the Harper one too :wink:
Nick Harper / Modern Eulogy
@ Sheffield Boardwalk
Arriving a little late, I heard a soaring male voice
coming from within. Surely Nick Harper couldn't
have started already? The voice turned out to
belong to Matt Williams, front-man of Sheffield
based support act Modern Eulogy. Sasha Williams
appeared later, adding harmonies, before giving
way to bassist Tommy Garside. Both of them gave
hints that theirs is a strong line-up but Matt
remained the focal point.
On to the one man entertainment phenomenon that
is Nick Harper. He carried off comic moments well
enough that you could see him trotting over to the
Last Laugh and holding his own there.
Jokes were thrown in and heckles dealt with ably but
it was merely a sideline to his music. Harper’s got a
frightening command of the acoustic guitar and his
own voice. This was never more evident than on
'Real Life', where Nick's playing and singing gave
flavour to a memorable tune. Somehow, Nick delivered
notes well above alto range without a hint of
strain. I’d forgotten myself for a while, and realised
my mouth was open and it wasn’t the only one.
A delicate touch was also evident on 'Three magpies'
and 'Radio Silence' but Harper’s not one to stick to
contemplative ballads. A series of scenery changes
were in order, jumping swiftly from hard rock, to folk
and acoustic punk. Covers were contained in medleys,
usually with Nick’s own songs. He seamlessly
merged Elvis and Led Zeppelin and later strode
through Monty Python, Blur, and Jeff Buckley numbers.
After a lengthy but never boring set, Harper
closed with his only single, 'Blue Sky Thinking'. The
crowd wanted more.
"He just gets better and better" a friend said to me,
as we were leaving. I’d seen other Nick Harper gigs
on par with it but this was a good one.
David Green
Nick Harper / Modern Eulogy
@ Sheffield Boardwalk
Arriving a little late, I heard a soaring male voice
coming from within. Surely Nick Harper couldn't
have started already? The voice turned out to
belong to Matt Williams, front-man of Sheffield
based support act Modern Eulogy. Sasha Williams
appeared later, adding harmonies, before giving
way to bassist Tommy Garside. Both of them gave
hints that theirs is a strong line-up but Matt
remained the focal point.
On to the one man entertainment phenomenon that
is Nick Harper. He carried off comic moments well
enough that you could see him trotting over to the
Last Laugh and holding his own there.
Jokes were thrown in and heckles dealt with ably but
it was merely a sideline to his music. Harper’s got a
frightening command of the acoustic guitar and his
own voice. This was never more evident than on
'Real Life', where Nick's playing and singing gave
flavour to a memorable tune. Somehow, Nick delivered
notes well above alto range without a hint of
strain. I’d forgotten myself for a while, and realised
my mouth was open and it wasn’t the only one.
A delicate touch was also evident on 'Three magpies'
and 'Radio Silence' but Harper’s not one to stick to
contemplative ballads. A series of scenery changes
were in order, jumping swiftly from hard rock, to folk
and acoustic punk. Covers were contained in medleys,
usually with Nick’s own songs. He seamlessly
merged Elvis and Led Zeppelin and later strode
through Monty Python, Blur, and Jeff Buckley numbers.
After a lengthy but never boring set, Harper
closed with his only single, 'Blue Sky Thinking'. The
crowd wanted more.
"He just gets better and better" a friend said to me,
as we were leaving. I’d seen other Nick Harper gigs
on par with it but this was a good one.
David Green