First review- Red Light Company, Colenso Parade

Published on GiggingNI.com 23-04-09

So, anyone fancy a pint on a warm spring evening accompanied by a combination of some of the best local talent and potentially the next big thing in British music? Well… you missed it. Last night I was treated to a performance by the excellent as ever ‘Colenso Parade’ and London’s ‘Red Light Company.’

Things kicked off at 8pm in a reasonably full Auntie Annie’s and it was clear from the offset that Omagh’s finest were out to enjoy themselves. Introducing themselves, unless my hearing was very much mistaken, as ‘Hi, we’re Colenso Parade and we want to meet your mums,’ Mickey, Fergal, Philly and Paul ‘Melly’ Melon all looking the part in shirts and ties began with the explosive Shine a Light. The onslaught of quirky, memorable vocal melodies, punchy bass lines accompanied by intricate guitar riffs and driving drums certainly turned heads in the crowd.

The Colenso lads seemed to be thoroughly enjoying themselves and their antics onstage rubbed off on the audience who greeted each song with more applause than the last. By the time Colenso Parade played ‘I want you scared’ most of the crowd, myself included, were unable to resist singing along to the infectious choruses.

Two brand new songs off the impressive EP ‘You And Me Against An Old Routine’ called ‘Smile’ and ‘Not for diamonds’ were given a good reception not only by Colenso’s faithful sitting opposite the stage, but by the crowd in general, not all of whom knew the Omagh band before the gig.

Undoubtedly the most memorable thing of the night came midway through a classic Colenso song ‘The Impressionable Miss Reilly’ when Mickey’s guitar cut out due to a still undetermined technical fault. Like any good guitarist Mickey’s backup was to grab the guitar off Fergal’s back and continue playing in a stunt admired by the whole audience for its spontaneity and comical execution. Fergal, clearly a bit uncomfortable without his guitar as he admitted after, continued to sing and played ‘air guitar’ until he got a chance to grab his acoustic guitar. Most impressive was the professional approach of the guys, who despite their young age, seem to have a wealth of experience. Their finale, ‘Better off’ taken from their new EP was an excellent finish to the set and got a good reception from a considerably larger crowd than had been present at the start of the set. This performance did Colenso Parade no harm and they are quickly establishing themselves as one of the top local acts and I for one will be going to see them again. The high-energy performance and fun loving approach from the band had toes tapping and put a smile on every face in the audience.

And so as Colenso Parade left the stage the sense of anticipation among the crowd seemed to become more intense as final preparations were made for Red Light Company. Each guitar was given a final tune up, amps were on and ready to go when the house music was dropped to give way to rapturous applause as Red Light Company took to the stage. Front man Richard Frenneaux’s presence was unmistakable as he commanded the attention of the audience, leaning into the microphone with his eyes glued to his subjects. And subjects we were. With every song the audience became more vocal, singing along and clapping in time to the music.  In a set dominated by songs from the new album ‘Fine Fascination’ unforgettable choruses were in abundance as the audience had no choice but to be swept along by each anthem-like tune. ‘With Lights Out’ led into ‘Arts and Crafts’ and a chorus so catchy and infectious a sing-a-long allowed a genuinely impressed Richard to take a step back giving the crowd the task of singing the chorus. Similar results with ‘Scheme Eugene’ and new single ‘Meccano’ left the band almost shocked at the level of response they were getting, and it wasn’t undeserved. Every song could have been taken from a top radio or TV chart show. Recent airplay from Zane Lowe on performances on Radio One’s Live Lounge have propelled this band onto the brink of the big time and last night’s show only served to confirm that they are deserving of it.  The slow build up of ‘When Everyone is Everybody’ to a crescendo of guitars, drums, synths and cries of ‘is there anybody out there’ brought the audience to tumultuous applause as the band casually strolled off stage. Having read previous reviews, which implied an apathetic approach from the band, I was delighted to find that this was not the case. Throughout the performance Richard, and Bassist/Keyboard player Chris Edmonds reiterated how great it was to finally play Belfast, and this seemed genuine as the band really gave their all in this performance. Speaking to Richard outside, he thanked the audience for their support and admitted that it was great to see such an excellent turnout and reception considering Red Light Company has never played here before, a sentiment echoed by guitarist Paul Mellon (not to be confused with Colenso’s drummer of the same name.)

Despite some songs being structurally predicable, it could be said that there’s not a lot of difference between some songs, and with a high reliance on catchy choruses, Red Light Company put on a great show and are a band who could well be moving swiftly up the charts in coming months. It was almost impossible not to sing along and become immersed in the music. Any band who can create this effect with every song must be doing something right.

Overall, crowd turnout and interaction with the bands was excellent, as both acts seemed to thrive on the positive response and electric atmosphere. Speaking to audience members who had never before heard of Colenso Parade I found that the Omagh boys had won themselves some new fans and they were without a doubt, the best choice to support Red Light Company in a well run, great sounding, and thoroughly enjoyable night.