Gig review - Shred Kelly live at The Eagle Inn, Salford 01/11/18

After a long and winding A-road or two around the outskirts of Salford on my badly bodged bicycle and happening across the modest and dimly lighted Eagle Inn caught between several building sites - I made my way inn. Four pound coins allowed me access to catch the Shred Kelly headline show, two weeks into their UK tour following their fourth album release, 'Archipelago'. The Eagle provides a choice for the gig attendees. You could be upstairs for the literal birds eye view of the stage - I briefly did, awkwardly. Later I found the room entrance downstairs where an audience slowly amassed for an array of amphibious acts.

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First up, Matt James Cassidy Up on stage comes the sky scraping Matt James Cassidy, fitted with a Faith acoustic guitar, a waistcoat and striped shirt combo, mutton chops and topped with eyeliner and a beret. Somehow stood beside him, a hairy and head-banded saxophone branding badass. Cassidy made light of this while offering his merchandise to the audience to fund their taxi home. "Imagine trying to hitchhike with him" he joked, "Would you pick us up?". I had to suppose that the ensemble makes more sense when backed by the other rumoured band mates but at points I felt like I was witnessing pirate morale singalong takes on the coronation street theme tune. At other points, authenticity broke in through the means of sad country and bluesy-er tones and smatterings of succinct and impactful lyricism from this grouchy voice of Cassidy's. "Everyone's out for themselves" is a line that stood out from his song, 'Sticks and Stones'. Tracks like 'Road to no Town' and his closing song also stood out, where his singalong songwriting really came into play - 'Brand New You, Same Old Me' where he had a call and response thing going between him and the audience as he taught them to chant "Brand new you" back at him when he sings the line prior. Morale was built. The people sang and laughed and refilled their cups. Ready for the next performance.

Charli White However modest and seemingly shy, Charli White had a charm that had the audience laughing and smiling. She had a lot of support from friends, family and three band mates. Her ethereal singing, fluid exploration of notes and double-paced acoustic guitar travis picks against the spacious, immensely creative electric lead work maintain a good back and forth between the drummer and bassists' harder attacks on the tracks. Attention to detail and finesse was on frequent display. Songs like 'Sanctuary' that truly exemplified the strength of songwriting being exerted here and a good demonstration of the bands' ability to create meaningful build in a song with no extra cheese. The drums were easy to nod to, the singer handled falsetto with ease, the lead riffs wouldn't just create a motif, they would evolve and augment with precise application, always with the song's intent in mind. Most of all, they seem authentic. Very impressive band. Shred Kelly Shred Kelly take to the stage and take the room. Or rooms. The 'balcony' area above us is just a room on the upper level with half the floor removed. The band complemented the venue and how much they have loved touring the UK for the first time. Sage McBride and Tim Newton enjoyed the fireplace "halfway to the ceiling". "And the radiator!" An audience member cheered - such an intimate setting for such a fulfilling and merry band of British Columbians. The five-piece had banjos, ukuleles, keyboards and guitars wrapped in with tight skiffle drumming - implements that really packages the sound as something raw and grassroots, a back-to-basics practicality and a reminder of its versatility and ability to commence a ho-down in northern England. Joyous music performed by musicians that only play the songs they all love and apply care at each step of the way. "We'll never put a song on the album that we don't all agree on. With all of us gravitating to different styles of music, it's difficult at times to all agree on what we like most. So if we all love it, it's a definite yes for the album." McBride has said in interview regarding the release of their latest album, 'Archipelago'. Songs of the album 'Way Down', 'Didn't Know' and the album's appropriate namesake, 'Archipelago' - a song they draw the similarities of their homeland to the islands they've visited on tour in Europe. Sage McBride has said "We worked hard to create an album that captured the energy of our live show... We are very proud and excited to put it out into the world." Energy was definitely at the forefront of their exterior, performing for the Eagle Inn. The fun that they had was equally shared with the crowd. It was smiles all round, people would jump arm in arm to the double time celebrations as harmonies dropped and banjos licked. That night, a small pub in Salford danced and rejoiced for sounds inspired by landscapes very far from home. The light on their feet and the light-hearted, Shred Kelly paved the way and made that happen.

See http://www.shredkelly.com/tour/ for details of their UK tour.