Spacehog at Webster Hall – January 16, 2010

The night started out with a band called Sing Orpheus, I was late so I didn’t actually see them perform but from what I’ve heard on their myspace page they have an ambient and mysterious sound and are signed to Anthony Langdon’s label, Dilettante Records.

I did manage to catch the second band Unisex Salon and am so glad I did, they put on a phenomenal show! The lead singer Kenyon Phillips had a great energy and reminded me a bit of Iggy Pop with his flailing arms, wiggling dance moves and hands on hips stance. His vocals mixed with female singer Autumn Ready Potter provided refreshing and interesting harmonies throughout the set, the funky disco beats and New York attitude made for a great combination. Songs like ‘What I need’ and ‘Oh, oh, oh, oh’ just make you want to get up and dance! All in all it was a show worth seeing and if, given the chance, I would highly recommend you check out these NYC locals.
To listen go to: www.myspace.com/unisexsalon

The main event of the night was of course the Spacehog reunion show and it would be the first gig they’d played in NYC together since 2002. The guys, a little older and a little wiser came on stage to an atmospheric melody playing on the overhead speakers and to the loud cheers of their adoring fans. They casually picked up their drumsticks and put on their guitars and a moment later the epic sounds of ‘Violet Race’ were vibrating our souls. With the fantastic Richard Steel on lead guitar it was a very memorable moment indeed as the crowd cheered again and immediately started bobbing their heads enthusiastically. Next up, a Teardrop Explodes cover ‘Rewards’, a hard rocking tune that you could dance to with some funky trumpeting that made it stand out from the rest. Their big hit ‘In the Meantime’ followed closely behind and it had the same majestic feeling it had in ’95; big and soaring, there’s never been another song anywhere quite like it. Anthony Langdon took over the vocals from Royston for the next song ‘Spacehog’. It sounded like the bands anthem with lyrics that stated:

Well I’m standing on the launch pad
looking at the stars
waiting for the countdown to begin
I’m not sure where I’m going
I’ve no way of knowing
but when the signal comes
it’s just 5,4,3,2,1
yeah baby I’m a Spacehog

I couldn’t help but think that this was a new beginning for the boys and that in a lot of ways they may be feeling some of the same emotions they had when ‘Resident Alien’ was first released, albeit a lot more experienced and savvy.

Song # 5 was a Queen cover ‘In the Lap of the Gods’ and Royston sat at the keyboards to sing. The song is about forlorn love and incongruities within relationships. It was a hauntingly, beautiful rendition, with a mesmerizing guitar wave and, along with the chorus backing from his band, I would say it was one of the more emotionally charged and powerful moments of the evening.

Song #6 was Ant’s turn to get behind the piano as Roy sang a slowed-down version of his old band Tender Trio’s ‘Cool water’. Inspired and ambient to begin with and ending with funky piano licks, upbeat and happy.

The song afterwards was indeed a real crowd pleaser; ‘Mungo City’ with its sultry rock riffs and laudable lyrics made me question why these boys weren’t as big as Elvis? ‘Isle of Manhattan’ followed with an up-tempo beat and was kind of like a reggae tune speeded up. The drummer, Jonny Cragg brought his best little boy voice to sing the end bit, much to the amusement of their fans.

My personal favourite was the the song ‘ Only a Few’, which actually brought a tear to my eye, ironic considering one of the lines in the song was ‘Big boys don’t cry’, although I’m a woman, so I guess I can get away with it.

‘Space is the Place’ with Ant on lead vocals was to follow and had the crowd jumping. Jonny earned his keep with the relentless beat and kept impeccable time while managing to infuse the song with his stellar drummer stylings, as always. It was closely followed by a new tune, ‘ Love is a Gift’, from the band’s 5th album (the 4th album still to be released by Warner Bros.) they’ve recently finished recording; another larger-than-life melody full of longing and power, with philosophical lyrics like ‘Love is the gift you give yourself’.

They finished the show with a song called ‘The Horror’, and again, the trademark heroic sounds that Royston Langdon produces were evident in its eerie refrain. It was a rock n’ roll poem.

After they left the stage the crowd whooped and cheered for several moments before the band returned to the stage and were greeted by more rapturous applause. ‘Beautiful Girl’ was the first song of three. I don’t know who this pretty, young thing was but she must have been very special to have had such an incredible song written about her. For ‘Germany’ Ant struck his rock star stance and performed lead vocals. It occurred to me that this modern, rocked up melody may have been something the Beatles would have written if they were still together.

The night was finished off by another phenomenal effort ‘Sunset Blvd.’, which I believe is also off of their new album and a magnificent way to complete an incredible evening! The song makes you want to sing and dance and take over the world all at the same time!

It’s been 12 years since I’ve had the opportunity to see these guys play live and on January 16th at Webster Hall the room was electric, the music inspirational and the band on the stage was Spacehog and it was so worth the wait!

To listen go to: http://www.myspace.com/spacehogmusic

Written by: Sarah Radford
Tuesday, January 19/2010