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Live Review
Concert: London Leicester Square Sound
Brief Description: Youthful rock act from Brighton, UK
Date: 13/8/01
There appears to be a stampede of praise currently being thrown over to younger acts trying to break through. The Soft Parade are key artists that have been caught up in a whirlwind of good reviews, plentiful radio airplay and the frightful tag, 'The Next Big Thing'. But are they really worthy of all this so soon..?
... After all, they've only released two singles, and - although their live reputation is slowly mounting - are still a good while off of releasing that all-vital debut album. The evidence from tonight's show - a promotional live set for London's Xfm - is that they've still got a way to go until they can fully justify the excitement building up around them.
To be fair, they're no way near the 'dirge' border of the Brit guitar scene - in fact, the instrument-swapping (to varying degrees of success) and valiant attempts at building a churning cauldron of raw and pure, unadulterated, art-noise are occasionally intriguing - and something that even an old stickler or purist would be able to get lost in. However, the definition of half of their material is not fine enough quite yet; songs end before they've properly kicked off and the brooding, atmospheric thump of the set-opener's intro promises more than what is finally offered - which is a mere break-out into a standard indie-offering.
However, they do look exceedingly interesting, if only for their quirkiness. The brothers White, Alex and Tom - the instigators of The Soft Parade - are a cross between a nervous, uncool teenager (clad in an original, Michael Jackson tour-shirt) and an even more uncool teenager. Also, on back-up, guitarist/keyboardist, Stuart, bemusingly plops a hat on to his head at the start of the performance, resembling more of a farmer than a rock-star, leaving just the bassist: clearly one of the younger members, his perfect, floppy mop of a haircut and tight, preppie-boy T-shirt conveys all the image of a star.
So, what with all of this going for them - in addition to a stunning crescendo of a finale, in the form of debut single, 'Silent To The Dark' - marred slightly by the unnecessary return onstage afterwards to perform the downbeat 'Echo In The Airport' - there does seems to be something going on here, although not quite as much as perhaps anticipated. However, given time to progress and mature as a band, The Soft Parade look certain to develop into a fine clutch of songwriters; it's just a shame that their early, growing stages have to be portrayed in such a public light. Let's just hope that the press don't grind their axes too much until they've achieved all that they look certain they can...
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Written By Toby L
Source: Rock Feedback
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