25 April 2012 (gig)
30 April 2012
Peering between the shoulders of a thousand teenage giants I catch the first glimpse of the man himself at the centre of the stage. Owing to ‘a couple of quick pints’ at the pub next door, Graham Coxon, previously estranged guitarist with ‘indie-pop sensation’ Blur is already halfway through his second song by the time I’m finally I’m making my way through the crowd.
With no sniff of an acoustic guitar tonight, it’s clear from the off (well, five minutes after the off) that this is going to be a run-through of the heavier, noisier and more energetic side of his extensive repertoire.
Despite drawing heavily from his recent album A+E, the set list also features some of the highlights from his 14 year solo career including ‘Standing On my Own Again’, ‘You & I’ and ‘I Can’t Look At Your Skin’, with ‘That’s All I Wanna Do’ from his first album making a surprise appearance.
At the ripe-old age of 43, Graham manages to leap around the stage with more energy and vigour than all of his youthful audience combined. Perhaps worn ragged after a hard day pushing figures the audience seem somewhat sedated but happy, swaying slowly with plaster-cast grins upon their faces. Conversation is kept short but sweet and it’s clear that Graham just wants to get on with playing some music.
The new material goes down well, and it sounds even better live than it does on the album. Fun & funky ‘Seven Naked Valleys’ proves popular as does ‘Running for your life’, a familiar tale for those who’ve ever been on a night out in Coventry. It’s lead single ‘What’ll it take’ during the encore that proves to be the song to finally get the audience moving though, which is just as well as 2004 hit ‘Freakin’ Out’ follows, a song that no sane person could possibly stand still to.
The Graham Coxon on stage tonight seems a far cry from the shy, timid and nervous performer I remember seeing back in 2000. Assured and confident, not once coming across as cocky, you can tell that he’s really enjoying himself on stage and it comes across in the music. His Red Bull-fuelled axe-wielding skills are a marvel to watch and whilst the music may not be to everyone’s tastes it was certainly a great homecoming show for his many admirers.
