[MANCHESTER ROCKS] The Pineapple Thief and Alex Henry Foster at the O2 Ritz: Live Review
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The Pineapple Thief and Alex Henry Foster at the O2 Ritz
I caught Alex Henry Foster & The Long Shadows opening for …Trail Of Dead shortly before the pandemic struck and was blown away by what I saw and heard, the album helped me get through lockdown #1 as I became totally absorbed in it. A band I knew I had to see again, and now they are opening for The Pineapple Thief, to a crowd that will be an easier win.
The O2 Ritz is surprisingly full for a support band many may not have heard of, but after their set many now know precisely who they are. And they cram an awful lot into the two songs they play – Slow Pace of the Winds and The Hunter, I say songs but really they are long sonic masterpieces that take you on a journey.
Whilst the band are playing studiously, perfectly, Foster is more dynamic with a passion and intensity that more than shines through. This is more than evident on The Hunter during which his emotion pours out and into the souls of those witnessing this.
At the end of the set Foster announces they will be headlining The Deaf Institute on 22 June 2022, he asks us “is it like an arena?” The crowd laughs knowingly that it isn’t, but we already know that the show will be intense!
I bumped into some friends during the interval and it was obvious that it was job done and Alex Henry Foster & The Long Shadows had made a seriously positive impression and that they are now fans.
How were The Pineapple Thief going to follow that? Well, they are already up a gear with the excellent Versions Of The Truth which has been out for about a year and with drummer Gavin Harrison now fully embedded in the band.
And it has been a long slow process to get here, I witnessed them play to a paltry crowd at SoundControl about 8 years ago, along with other small gigs like at the Ruby Lounge, so any success they now have is well deserved.
Tonight’s set covers a broad spectrum of albums although the majority of the songs are pulled from Versions Of The Truth and Dissolution, although the performance of every piece is greeted enthusiastically by this dedicated crowd That Shore, Far Below and Driving Like Maniacs being the highlights for me. They are incredibly tight too, supplemented with additional guitarist George Marios to allow Bruce Soord to be more of a frontman.
The only downside, no 3000 Days, and if I am honest I was gutted it wasn’t played but you can’t have everything.
ANTHONY FIRMIN
4 novembre 2021