Saturday 24/11/07 The Kooks, The Pigeon Detectives, The Metros, One Night Only @ The Union Chapel, Islington

The setting for Mencap’s Little Noise Sessions may not be stunning but the venue is. Just over the road from the grimy Kebab shops and McDonalds stores is the Union Chapel, an eye catching building climbing high into the sky with steep pillars. Don’t expect your standard throng of standing onlookers either, this is a purely seated affair with pews laid tidily facing the stage and a second tier up above below a giant ceiling with stain glass windows lending an eye catching backdrop. 

 

A stellar line up has been put on and it is reassuring that all the acts are quick to remind the audience of the good cause they are supporting tonight in between belting out their tunes. One Night Only are the first band out as Gigwise scrambles for its pew. It is a touching acoustic performance full of confidence with ‘Just for Tonight’ being a standout amid echoed vocals which reverberate around the Chapel for what seems like an age. They certainly sound like a Kooks in the making.

 

The Metros are brash and excitable. They encourage plenty of clapping and hyperactivity and seem very much in the mould of the second support, the Pigeon Detectives, although they are a firmly London band with their swagger and voices making this obvious. They pound through the chirpy ‘Live a Little’ and ‘Last of the Lookers’ which get the first audience members to rise out of their pews and show their appreciation.

 

The Pigeon Detectives decide to go electric rather than acoustic. Tracks like ‘Stop or Go’, ‘Take her Back’ and ‘I Need You’ sound like how the Others should have turned out. Fans are well up off their pews by now as vocalist Matt Bowman works the crowd faking a stage dive and trying to create as much crowd participation as possible without blowing the roof off the Chapel. The performance is routine and they do look tired after touring but you can’t fault them in terms of effort and they gain a truly dedicated crowd response.

 

The Kooks mix up their set with only singer Luke Pritchard remaining on stage throughout. They use acoustic bass and guitars which lend to the intimate atmosphere. Old tracks like ‘She Moves in Her Own Way’ and ‘Ooh La’ draw fantastic responses and the sound of this, and every other, set tonight is flawless. The acoustics of the Chapel and the layout are perfect for Pritchard as some of the new tracks aired demonstrate the strength of his voice. Some suggest a new, more bluesy direction while others feel like the follow up to catchy guitar tracks like ‘Sofa Song’. ‘Seaside’ blends straight into ‘See the World’ in what proves to be the set highlight. ‘Naïve’ slips a little as Luke forgets the words, much to his band mate’s amusement. For all the thanks he gives, Luke seems a little agitated by the crowd and a touch of arrogance exudes from the hour long set.

 

The encore sees bassist Max Rafferty sing a new track which is the highlight of the new material tonight. Finally ‘Jackie Big Tits’ ensures the whole audience rise off their pews for a dance and a sing-along which brings the set to a triumphant close. The good cause and significant support ensure that the Little Noise sessions will return to this grand setting again next year.