Easy Minds | KT Tunstall
Piece Corridor Halifax
Monday 7 July 2025
Some bands have that one tune that propels them from being a band the critics like to world superstardom, and forty years in the past, Easy Minds hit that profession jackpot once they recorded Don’t You (Neglect About Me) for the Breakfast Membership soundtrack.
That tune’s large hook, plus the movie’s world success, despatched it to primary in America, and for lots of the primarily middle-aged crowd was a key tune of their musical journey. Easy Minds have retained their following as a result of they’ve at all times been considered one of our extra clever bands, who launched a collection of progressive New Wave albums earlier than turning into unlikely chart toppers.
One of many bonuses of this longer than ever collection of Piece Corridor gigs is that the opening acts are at all times high class, and tonight their fellow Caledonian KT Tunstall was on backup responsibility. Tunstall made her breakthrough with a final minute look on Later with Jools Holland, and since then has launched a number of constantly good information. She was additionally a full of life and interesting performer who rapidly had the group onside together with her catchy high 20 hit Different Aspect Of The World. She even had time to inform us that her drummer had purchased his first cymbal in one of many impartial outlets which are dotted round this former service provider’s buying and selling corridor, earlier than ending with a stomping Immediately I See.
Easy Minds opened with Waterfront, which was a basic instance of their sound primarily based on Charlie Burchill’s trademark shimmering guitar as his major faculty mate Jim Kerr wafted round this large stage as he contorted his physique into completely different shapes and waved his arms to work the group as solely a veteran frontman can. Telling them ‘we’re all brothers and sisters, ’ you knew Kerr meant it.
Kerr and Burchill have been raised in seventies Glasgow, so had at all times been a band with a real sense of neighborhood, and Burchill acquired out the Gretsch for the pop/rock of Glittering Prize as Kerr jokingly complained he was “knackered”, which wasn’t stunning as a person who certified for a bus move by no means stopped transferring as he jumped on and off the drum riser. One fan was waving a Saltire throughout Oh Jungleland, which was applicable because it was a heartfelt paean to their house metropolis, backed by evocative pictures of Glasgow on the large display screen and what occurs when success takes you far-off out of your roots.
Introducing Ghost Dancing, Kerr laughed “I’m too previous for this malarky’, however he discovered a second wind as he bobbed and weaved via this beautiful slice of synth rock. He took a break in the course of the nonetheless eerie instrumental Theme For Nice Cities, from their early artwork rock interval, and you may see why it was a shock hit with nineties ravers in Ibiza. Sadly, the ending was marred by a tedious drum solo that may have shamed even essentially the most self-indulgent steel drummers. All a bit Spinal Faucet.
They bounced again on for a full of life Promised You A Miracle, which underlined their knack for an enormous pop hook and sparked the primary singalong, egged on by Kerr. As you would possibly count on, they milked Don’t You (Neglect About Me) as the group roared again the acquainted ‘la, la, la’ chorus and the telephones got here out to file it as Kerr joked they have been going to “put him out of job”. It’s clearly not simply the youngsters who discover it troublesome to remain within the second when a band and their followers spontaneously come collectively as one.
Alive And Kicking was one other of their large anthems, which served as a reminder of what an underrated guitarist Burchill is, and appeared applicable as this can be a band that continues to thrive via the vagaries of musical fashions and actions. At one level, the indefatigable Kerr paused to notice that in a tousled world, tonight was about “concord, neighborhood and energy of music”, which summed up why Easy Minds can nonetheless draw large crowds.
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You’ll be able to observe Easy Minds on Fb and Twitter.
Phrases by Paul Clarke, you may see his creator profile right here.
Photographs by Frank Ralph, you will discover Frank at his web site | Instagram| Fb
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