Time has not been especially kind to the memory of the Wedding Present. The image of them as some quintessentially late '80s jangly ‘indie’ band has proved particularly hard to shift. The very notion of them having any relevance in 2005 is surely laughable, isn’t it?
The fact that the show is sold out well in advance would suggest not, and the looks of sheer determination on the faces of those clinging to the stage in the front row also implies that, for some at any rate, it has been far too long. Taken at face value, it seems like a night of harmless nostalgia, so how come we depart the venue feeling that we might just have seen one of the year’s best bands in action?
The answer is that the Wedding Present are firmly in control of their own destiny tonight, calling the shots rather than pandering to expectations. Or rather David Gedge is. Flanked by a handful of hired young bucks, he looks more like a geography teacher than ever, yet there are few musicians who pass this way that inspire such idolatry from their audience in such unassuming fashion.
He’s earned it though, as this sprint through his canon undoubtedly proves. The decision to revisit all points is a wise one, contrasting the naive enthusiasm of those early days with the controlled aggression of their later output.
Against all the odds the newer stuff is undeniably good as well, showing Gedge to be a far more consistent songwriter than maybe we gave him credit for. They only slip up once – after a particularly breakneck version of ‘Kennedy’ leaves certain parts of their gear in ruins.
A basic error and one that you think twenty odd years of playing gigs would have ironed out. But no-one ever said the Wedding Present were perfect and that’s still part of their charm. The campaign for a main stage slot at Oxegen starts here.