Review by Elizabeth Sinclair
Seth Lakeman
Ironworks, Inverness, 29 April 2008
Seth Lakeman (www.sethlakeman.com)
IF I’M honest, I’d not heard much about Seth Lakeman when I booked my tickets for his show. Considering the last gig I went to there was Fatboy Slim, and the next will be The Wombats, that’s maybe no surprise!
However, a close friend has been a fan of Mr Lakeman since his performance at last year’s Hebridean Celtic Festival (he will be appearing there again this year) and she had a ticket going spare. Never one to refuse a ticket to a gig, I agreed to go along, although somewhat reluctantly – could I really enjoy the music of a BBC 2 Folk Awards winner?
Of course, as well as having won Best Album and Folk Singer of the Year at the above mentioned awards in 2007, Seth Lakeman also received a Mercury Music Prize nomination in 2005 for his second solo album Kitty Jay. Other nominees that year included Coldplay, Hard-Fi, Kaiser Chiefs and KT Tunstall – now these ARE artists I have heard off!
So to get back to my earlier question, would I enjoy the gig? The answer to this, of course, is yes. Having arrived too late to catch the support act, there wasn’t much of a wait until the man of the moment arrived on stage. Despite the fact I knew none of the words to a single song (I blame the death of my trusty I-Trip, meaning no music in the car the week before the gig), Seth’s performance was superb, and had converted me to a fan within minutes.
The energy he possesses while on stage is captivating, and most of the crowd didn’t seem to stop moving the whole evening, dancing and singing along word-perfect to every song. What was nice to see at this gig, compared to other I have been to at the Ironworks, was the chilled out atmosphere of the crowd and the number of families present, even though it was a week night – it just goes to show the universal appeal of the music Seth Lakeman is making.
The current tour is to promote his new album, Poor Man’s Heaven, which is due out this summer. The title track is definitely one to look out for and was one of the highlights of the evening. There was also plenty to keep his most reverent fans happy, with many songs from his previous albums including ‘Kitty Jay’, ‘The White Hare’ and ‘Lady of the Sea’.
All too soon, the gig was over and it was time to head home. On the way out, we were handed what I thought was a demo CD, which I was looking forward to listening to. It wasn’t until the next day I realised it was blank, so you could go onto the Seth Lakeman website to download your favourite tracks! However, given the huge back catalogue, I think it may take more than one CD!
© Elizabeth Sinclair, 2008
