Review: Paul Weller, Colston Hall

Paul Weller sold out the Colston Hall in a matter of minutes (no wonder he’s already selling tix for a 2018 arena tour) and come the night it was packed with the devoted, and pleasingly full of youngsters as well as grizzled (but impeccably turned out) old veterans from the heady days of ye olde punk rock.

Since then he’s had a hell of a career trajectory and arguably created a body of work that far surpasses any of his contemporaries, and is one of the most interesting, challenging, varied and obstinately contrary bodies of work in British pop / rock.  The set he played proved that beyond question, a genre hopping, groovily soulful yet rocking set, held together by the common thread of his song writing skills and classic blue-eyed soul shouter voice.

The stage set was plain – a set of white / strobe lights acting as the backdrop (which would be the envy of any Bay Area speed metal band with their retina scorching brightness) and bugger-all else apart from amps, keys and two drum kits, both advertising his next LP A Kind Revolution his thirteenth solo outing. The main set was superbly paced and beautifully judged, mixing up band and solo cuts, and the sound crisp, clear and punchy…well apart from the vocals, which came across as rather muffled at times particularly when he chose to address the crowd (thus four songs in “…muffled muffled muffled Bristol muffled muffled time…muffled muffled Bristol muffled always muffled…”).

The set opened with some tremendous heft, never mind the (condescending) dad-rock brickbats, these were pounding tunes equipped with chunky riffs and squalling leads (strongly evoking The White Album at times) and they were met with roars of approval. Four songs in, Weller shifted down a gear with Ghosts and then swerved soulfully in to a My Ever Changing Moods and Have You Ever Had it Blue, both tunes getting the audience moving and met with genuine singalong pleasure by the crowd.

Saturns Pattern saw Weller behind the keys with a bass shout out “muffled birthday muffled bass muffled Andy Croft…” followed by Going My Way, both tunes steeped with a seventies pop vibe, the former tune’s introduction weirdly reminiscent of Mr Blue Sky of all things. New side Woo See Mama had a heavy funk vibe with some delightful keyboard interplay that teetered on the edge of a full-on wig out.

Guitar in hand, Weller returned to centre stage for a commanding rendition of Man in the Corner Shop, another opportunity for the crowd to supply the backing vocals with several beefy fellas finding something in their eyes as they bellowed “For God created all men equal” at the climax. The Attic was introduced as “…an old tune from muffled muffled album that was number one…in Bristol” and then a solid chunk of songs followed. Into Tomorrow full of psychedelic swirl; The Cranes are Back a slower jam, offering respite and Up in Suze’s Room decorated with Weller’s best solo of the night.

Incidentally the band were superb throughout, acknowledged by Weller (“muffled Andy Crofts muffled, Ben muffled, guitar muffled Cradock muffled muffled drums muffled Steve muffled Pilgrim”) the sense of pleasure emanating from the stage palpable as the songs flew by. Peacock Suit brought back the heavy and I Walk on Gilded Splinters teased but somehow never quite took off and then Come On / Let’s Go brought the set to a boisterous climax.

After a rather long delay, which was barely livened up by roadies adjusting mics, situating stools and generally farting around with the setup, the band retuned with Weller telling the crowd that “…this ain’t the encore, that was an intermission and this is the second half of the set”. Acoustics in hand, the band played six cuts that gave both crowd and band a well-earned breather after the finely paced but mostly tumultuous up-tempo sonik kicks of the main set.

A tender cover of Lennon’s Love opened the encore (coincidence alert: The Jam played The Locarno the day Lennon was murdered), this and the other cuts giving the band chance to show off some exquisite West Coast harmonies. Mandolins came and went, Monday was met with rapture and film soundtrack tunes were showcased (Ballad of Jimmy McCabe). This acoustic encore was a bravura move – it would have been easy to storm the encores with old favourites but this was a sharp move, showcasing Weller’s willingness to test himself and his audience. Out of the Sinking was the final tune, reinvented and reinvigorated and a fitting conclusion.

The band were back on more quickly for the second encore – four tunes that stretched the set out beyond the two-and-a-half-hour mark suggesting that like Springsteen, Weller is determined not to go gently into that good night but rather is gonna play career encompassing age defying sets ‘til the end (Jersey has the Boss, Woking has the Gaffer).

The extra tunes were delayed as Weller was guitar-less for what he felt was an eternity, milking the crowd reaction to the band’s return in a show of uncharacteristically cheery showbiz gestures before gruffly asking “How long does it take to get a fackin’ guitar on stage”, oddly enough the only clear stage announcement all night. The Impossible Idea and These City Streets went down well but Start! got a massive response – the band joined by “…muffled special guest Cassius muffled muffled guitar muffled muffled son…” – with the whole place singing and grooving along. Finally ending the show with Changingman, a pugnacious song when written tonight it was a triumphant statement of intent as Weller continues to push his craft and refuses to rest on his laurels.

Paul Weller played Colston Hall on Saturday, April 1. For more Colston Hall lineups, visit www.colstonhall.org