First, we brought you an in-depth review of their 10th studio album, L.A. Times, courtesy of yours truly. Next, the XS Noize Podcast host Mark Millar recorded a superb podcast with bassist Dougie Payne. Finally, we conclude with a review of Glasgow’s finest, Travis, at the O2 City Hall, Newcastle upon Tyne. 2024 has certainly been coming up Travis at XS Noize, it seems.
On a chilly December night, I headed to the venue with curiosity pulsing through my veins. I am embarrassed to say this, but I am a Travis virgin. Despite their long career and my enjoyment of much of their music, I’ve never managed to see them perform live. Tonight, they would renounce my V-card.
I was particularly interested to see how tracks from their last album would play with the City Hall crowd. Sometimes, when a band has performed for many years, a decent portion of the crowd expects a greatest hits setlist. When they deviate from these classic tracks, the audience can get restless. It has always been an irritation to me. Would tonight be one of those shows?
As the house lights dimmed, the theme from the US TV sitcom ‘Cheers’ drifted across the venue. The band crept onto the stage under a blanket of darkness, ready to get the show rolling. As the theme ended, the stage lights glowed, and Travis was primed to entertain the eager crowd. They kicked off proceedings with ‘Bus’ from their latest album. The first test was the audience’s reaction to their new material. They absolutely loved it – a good sign indeed.
When the opening chords of ‘Driftwood’ rang out, a massive roar of approval was unleashed. First released twenty-five years ago, it still sounds as fresh as a daisy. An almighty sing-along broke out – including me singing like a loon in the pit! My apologies to those in the front row who had to endure my dulcet tones. ‘Love Will Come Through’ successfully rounded off the band’s opening salvo.
‘Alive’ and ‘Good Feeling’ came next, showcasing Travis’s lengthy career. The two tracks were released twenty-seven years apart. Whilst they are very different songs, they are unmistakingly and unashamedly Travis. Apparently, the band seemed to get as much joy playing their latest work as they did their older offerings. It is clear the years spent together have formed them into a very polished live act. Musically, they are tighter than an elastic band around a hippo’s waist.
Delving back into their second album, The Man Who, the packed-to-bursting City Hall was treated to a stunningly beautiful rendition of ‘Writing to Reach You’, with Fran Healy’s vocals still as melodic and poignant as they were a quarter of a century ago. I always felt this song didn’t get enough recognition back in the day despite it reaching the top 20 in the singles chart.
Healy took a moment to give some background on ‘Re-Offender’, explaining the domestic abuse he witnessed as a child. The song explores a common trait of this difficult situation – the perpetrator is violent, apologises with the promise it won’t happen again, and the perpetrator is violent again. Rinse and repeat. It is a brilliant but brutal song at odds with much of the band’s catalogue. Yet it still stands as a quality slice of vintage Travis.
The beautiful ‘A Ghost’ acted as a lovely counterbalance to the previous song, followed by the catchy ‘Side’, featuring a guest performance from long-time guitar technician Nick Freemantle. Enacting his ‘Jean-Michel Jarre’ moment, as Healy described it, the spotlight descended upon him as he demonstrated his skill at repeatedly playing the same note on the synth. It is good not to take yourself too seriously!
‘Closer’ led us into ‘Sing’, the highest charting Travis single, peaking at number three in the UK charts. And quite aptly, the majority of the 2,000+ crowd did just that. Healy whirled about the stage with guitar in hand, full of energy and passion. He reminded me of Michael ‘Olga’ Algar, the Toy Dolls lead singer, who is still a bundle of energy at 65. Come to think of it, Healy’s hair has a passing resemblance to Olga’s, too!
Perennial crowd favourite ‘Selfish Jean’ kept the crowd in good voice and maintained the enthusiastic energy in the room. We then went full circle as we joined the dots to the entrance music. ‘Raze the Bar’, taken from L.A. Times and the tour’s name, is all about a much-loved Greenwich Village haunt forced to close during the pandemic as the landlord refused to negotiate a reduced rent. Healy described the landlord as a c*nt, followed by the explanation that where the Inuit people are said to have a thousand words for snow (it’s actually about 50), Glaswegians have around a thousand different meanings for the word c*nt. That bit may well be true.
Possibly the highlight of my evening was the reaction the crowd gave to ‘Gaslight’. It is one of the finest songs on their latest album and was greeted with cheers. All around me, people were singing and dancing along to it as if it was an old favourite. Seeing the passion for this song from the Newcastle audience gave me a buzz. It must encourage the band to keep writing and to continue touring—quite the achievement.
Healy sat at the front of the stage as he performed the soulful ballad ‘Naked in New York City’ before the band ripped into the astounding ‘Turn’. It is possibly my favourite Travis track, and I and a couple of thousand other people in attendance fully let rip our vocal cords. I dare say they heard us all crooning across the Tyne in Gateshead! It was a beautiful moment, even if many of us were off-key. Even bassist Dougie Payne got in on the act, singing the second verse without a safety net.
Our two-song encore started with an acoustic version of ‘Flowers in the Window’. Healy sang and strummed as drummer Neil Primrose played tambourine. The audience helped out with backing vocals, along with Payne and multi-instrumentalist Andy Dunlop. It was clearly too energetic for Healy as, for one verse, he stopped playing his guitar. Not to worry, Payne stepped in to do the strumming whilst Dunlop took care of the chords – all four grouped and contorted like a dodgy remake of Queen’s ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ video.
The night concluded with ‘Why Does It Always Rain on Me?’, with the audience trying their best to blow the roof of the City Hall with their singing and hollering. And with most people pogoing along during the last choruses at the request of Mr Healy, I dare say the foundations took a bit of a battering too.
As I left the venue, it was tinged with a bit of sadness. Why hadn’t I seen Travis before now? Still, it’s better late than never, I guess. I thoroughly enjoyed the evening, and it seemed everyone else did, too. There was a lovely, friendly atmosphere all evening. The crowd seemed to span the ages from 10 to 70, demonstrating they have a loyal following and are still snaring new fans. The future continues to look bright for this Scottish quartet. Here’s hoping I get to see them again. Maybe I won’t wait as long next time…
Setlist
Bus
Driftwood
Love Will Come Through
Alive
Good Feeling
Writing to Reach You
Re-Offender
A Ghost
Side
Closer
Sing
Selfish Jean
Raze the Bar
Gaslight
Naked in New York City
Turn
Encore:
Flowers in the Window (Acoustic version)
Why Does It Always Rain on Me?
Be the first to comment