What an excellent gig. In the face of apathy on the dancefloor, of which I'm as guilty as the next person, Gorilla turned in a blinding 25 minute set. Even if according to John afterwards, it was supposed to be 30.
So, what highlights were there? Well the times when the band played onstage really, though I guess the bits where Andy played guitar on the bar top, on the table by the merchandising stall, in the middle of where the crowd normally is, and while hanging from the lighting rig were pretty good as well. Well ok, he didn't play while dangling from the lighting, as he was using his hands to hang on, but that's being picky. Maybe the highlight though was when the entire band, save for Neil on his drums, played where the crowd should've been. See, give them Lars Ulrich's moveable drumkits and they could've done the entire gig on the dancefloor, with the crowd on the stage.
But all that makes it sound as if the visual stage (and other parts of the benue) presence of the band overrides the music. And it certainly doesn't. On a first impression, it will leave a mark, as it should, but when you've heard the music a few times, you still find yourself being drawn to the stage and what's being belted out. And that's a fine testament in my opinion.
Let You Down, Outside, Glassed are all fine moments. Showcasing different elements of the band, and still sounding fresh and heavy. Who Wants To Save The World Anyway is a fine choice for single, worming its way into your head even after the first listen, and Superstar sounds better each time I hear it.
The best is saved until last however, with the awesome 98 Grand. It's on the WWTSTWA single, and is a brilliant song. Great way to end a really impressive gig, which in my mind, despite the relative lack of crowd interest in comparison to headliners The Beekeepers, blew the headliners away. Sorry to all you people interested in them, but the vesatility of Gorilla shone through. Still wish they'd played Acid Test though, even though I understand John explaining afterwards that they didn't expect people to know the material, so decided to go for all new stuff. If they can get on the right major tour and do a set like this each night, then things are begining to look good again for the band. And about time to.