Who
Euros Childs
Support
Matthew Edwards And The Unfortunates
Where
Birmingham Centrala
When
22nd November 2017
Price
£12.00
Who with
Tom
Position
Towards the left
Comments
It is a sorry state of affairs that after seeing Euros touring his first three solo albums over three nights in 2006/7, that I hadn't got to see the great man since, barring his turn with Jonny at The Glee Club in 2011. I have been keeping a close eye on his website and it seems he simply hadn't done a proper tour in years, plus I half suspect I may have missed out on an opportunity or two due to other commitments. I relished the chance to catch up with Euros for just £12 at a mysterious new venue in Digbeth, Birmingham near the cool graffiti area I'd started to really appreciate, and snapped up my ticket quickly, also finding the time to listen through his complete back catalogue in order to put together a definitive best of. This process really helped me to realise just how much great stuff he'd made, as sadly without the live experiences I'd just found myself overwhelmed with a new Euros Childs album every year and no natural opportunity to get into it. Arriving at my favourite 35 tracks enhanced my appreciation of the tunes that didn't make it, but more importantly the strength of his greatest hits really blew me away, as over the course of 12 albums he'd amassed some real classics, many of which I was sadly barely familiar with. As this compilation coincides with the new lease of life that my now fully functional iPod was enjoying I heard it many times over, not having to force myself as I sometimes do but genuinely being happy to hear the songs over and over again.

I was a huge fan to begin with of course, even rearranging a planned visit to London to enable me to attend the show. But it was all for nothing anyway as that fell through so my mate could move house then, leaving me to an alternative and perhaps equally exciting plan of heading down south to Bristol and Wells over the course of three days, and with a full day off work either side of my trip so I could combine sightseeing with some much needed chill out time. The fact I have used the second chill out day to write up this review and the bulk of The Rolling Stones one a full month late perhaps indicates that I spent the time efficiently! As the concert fell on the night I was breaking up from work I had the challenge of orchestrating what stuff I could leave in the office for 5 days, what I had to take out with me, planning so I wouldn't be driving in, and working out what I shouldn't take at all so it would be available for my mini trip. My meticulous planning was thrown off when I was presented with a bottle of home-brewed beer at work, but luckily it survived a long weekend unattended at my office! I got changed at work and headed through the Wolves Christmas lights switch-on crowds blocking up the square, which had been thoughtlessly timed to clash with a Wolves match too! One year I must stop and watch the festivities, although the Adele soundalike gracing a large stage hardly sold the event to me! Luckily I was heading against the crowds, and after trying to persuade both Tom and Reno to join me for the show, it was just Tom who joined me in the end, Reno siding with watching the Wolves, although they were going through a rare spell of actually winning matches and topping the league!

To be fair I had been reasonably confident that the show wouldn't sell out and had left the door open to the others for whether to join me, knowing that I would attend either way and it would be their loss if they didn't join me, although after discovering that they'd both been interested in Sparks I did feel that I should make a bit more effort to ask others, as frustrating as it often is. Before the gig I'd purchased Euros House Arrest album, but as it hadn't arrived yet I downloaded it from the website, hearing it twice through before the show. Apart from a couple of tracks it didn't really register, which perhaps is why I have missed out so badly by not watching Euros tour each album, because my appreciation for the new material increased ten fold after watching it live. On the train to Brum I was listening through some of the old Euros tracks that hadn't made their way onto my best of, ultimately none of which would be played tonight, but without spoiling the setlist for myself I had no way of knowing. I had caught a glimpse of a setlist on Facebook and luckily turned off my brain fast enough so no spoilers sank in, and ultimately it is this one setlist that gives me a vague idea of what Euros played tonight. I also read the Metro on the way in, and being conscious that I was behind with my reviews I made some notes that form the material you have read above. I met Tom a little after 6pm at New Street, with plenty of time before the show but sadly in time for a serious bout of wind and rain just after I decided it would be a smart choice to eat at The Old Crown in Digbeth rather than yet another Wetherspoons meal.

And to be fair Wetherspoons curry night isn't the best choice before a gig, as the taste stays on your breath throughout the performance, and given the quality of meal and beer at Birmingham's oldest pub I do feel we made the correct choice despite the long and wet walk there. I enjoyed an expensive steak and chips meal plus three completely original beers, whereas Tom went for a curry that was so hot it threw him off, but apparently it was good too! I was a little worried as to when the show would start, with Tom verifying via Centrala's Twitter account that the support would be starting at 8pm and Euros himself at 9pm, all after doors had opened at 7:30pm, which was the only information I'd found myself. After these fantastic beers - which Tom couldn't join me for as he was driving - we headed toward the venue, sadly missing out on some of the fascinating Digbeth graffiti because it was very dark. We foolishly followed Google Map's directions, being led on a wild goose chase around a deserted canal tow path, when what we really needed to do was walk through the car park we'd seen and dismissed because there was absolutely no information indicating that it was for a music venue. I suspect we were the only ones fooled by this thanks to our reluctance to wander into a private car park without the invite of a clear sign, but we arrived around 8:30pm to find a quite empty-looking place, giving our names to gain entrance rather than having to mess around with the unnecessarily long reference number. The ticket booking agency made a big song and dance about not needing to print anything, and it did work, although I do feel sad when I don't have the physical souvenir of a ticket to remember the event by.

The venue certainly made a good second impression though, saying that we were due £2 refunds on the booking fee we'd paid! We never asked for this, and as far as I can tell the booking fee was only £1.20, but who could argue? And even better my refund was provided in the form of a Rio Olympics £2 coin, which I was thrilled to show off before putting it carefully away so it could be added to my collection later. We were then ushered upstairs where the action was, which made the deserted bar area make a little more sense. I spotted Euros on the merchandise store but quickly headed around the partition to the stage area. This venue was truly extraordinary, with no elevated stage to speak of but a mass of wires and equipment everywhere. There were a dozen or so chairs laid out to the left and right, with other fans standing against the wall or the temporary partitions that had been set up. The room was like a disused warehouse with an incomplete ceiling and it felt like it was either a very temporary venue or that a refurbishment was around the corner, but I was intrigued to be somewhere new and different, if a bit taken aback that the small size of the room made this one of the most intimate gigs I'd ever attended. Euros Childs fans are hard to place, with a young kid presumably with his parents and a few of our age, plus others a little older and some younger who presumably hadn't been around when Gorky's Zygotic Mynci had been lighting up the top 75 (but never the top 40!). Most unusually the screen was off to the right of the performers, with a laptop simply positioned on a chair in front of the stage rather than being tucked away to one side. You could see the footage being loaded from Windows Media Player, and later YouTube, making for a ramshackle but amusing presentation.

The support band Matthew Edwards And The Unfortunates was already onstage, and he sounded quite professional so was at odds with my first impressions of the room. He said three of the band were missing - and one in jail, which he said wasn't a joke as we all smiled - so it was just him and one other guy. It was pleasant as without any drums we could enjoy the singing and relax a little, as Matthew sported a smart suit and engaged in a bit of banter, at one point asking us who was in a picture he projected onto the screen, but as no-one knew her he moved on! I think the last tune was about Birmingham, and although we'd been a little late and missed much of his set it was as good as you could realistically expect at such a small venue. I nearly bumped into a lady in a green t-shirt who it turned out was an integral part of the show, but she smiled and without incident we headed downstairs to the bar, where Tom kindly offered to buy me a drink. I spotted that they had Maisel's Weisse and were actually apologetic when they said that they only had a big bottle available! Although obviously devastated by this turn of events I made do, drinking it quickly before the main act then leaving the bottle and glass on the one table I could see. We'd seen the support group from the far right side of the stage and I correctly guessed that the view would be better from the left, in particular because then the central pillar would no longer be in our line of sight. Plus I'm sure my brain knows by now that being left is always better than being far right! A few fans were sitting on the floor and it was difficult to tell what capacity the venue had, if any, but presumably the configuration had been arranged on the back of how many tickets were sold, and would have been different if there'd been more of us.

Euros set up his own equipment with the lady, who turned out to be Rosie Smith of Oh Peas!, who was sporting a Spillers Records top to match Euros plain green t-shirt. I thought it had been his wife at first, but I can find no evidence of this, so I assume that her presence was a concession to the need to have some kind of band, but without going the whole hog of having a full live setup. I'm sure I've seen Euros completely by himself as well as in full group configuration, and the man can make a success of either way! I clocked that they were playing Girl On A Swing by Kevin Ayers before the show started, giving me a chance to explain to Tom what a huge fan early Gorky's had been of the man, with the presence of this tune indicating that the love continues. I also have Gorky's to thank for getting me into Ayers, as his greatest hits compilation has some really fascinating pop and psychedelic moments on. After setting everything up, Euros and Rosie hid behind a screen in the corner for a minute so they could give us the traditional joy of applauding them onstage, which we all did loudly, both thanks to our enthusiasm and the excellent sound-carrying acoustics of the small venue. Euros was introduced by the guy who seemed like the compere, although whether he was on tour with Euros or affiliated with just the venue is hard to say. He certainly seemed like a fan though, and the question of if it was ok to take photos was quickly answered as he took a good few shots himself shortly after introducing Euros. After seeing before how forward-thinking Euros is I had zero expectation of any Gorky's songs, which made the opening number of (Do The) Chicken In The Jungle even more delightful.

There must surely be Gorky's fans who own most of the albums but aren't aware of the single b-sides, but tonight it felt that everyone here was sufficiently dedicated to the cause to know the obscure b-sides every bit as well as I. I shot a video, capturing Rosie nearest us and Euros both on keyboards for the instrumental bit, although Rosie spent most of the set casually banging two drums, plus a bit of time on the guitar. It was hard to tell whether she was bored or just very casual and chilled out, but as she kept perfect timing it does imply that she's a genuine fan who knew the material, and she seemed to enjoy the banter and unexpected bits just as much as the rest of us. Euros Childs was a few years older than before but wonderfully slim, and shorter than I remembered. He was a little unshaven but looks fantastic considering it had been almost 20 years since I'd become a fan, and back then he was on his 5th album with Gorky's already. He was also amusingly drinking from a huge bottle of water which was 99% empty before he even started. As I got the setlist from another night I do struggle to know what was played when, although I have verified from my second video that I'm A Yellow Bag by Cousins was played, with Rosie on drums. Newbie Life In A Jar perked up our attention for the new material, and I shot a video for the utterly gorgeous Turning Strange, where by now Euros was closest to us and again they were both on keyboards. Before this Euros had been moving some of his advanced equipment around, explaining it was tough because he wasn't himself an advanced human being, although he was careful to go around the back and explained it was all about the health and safety, which is appropriate for the National Elf!

I shot my fourth video for what turned out to be the highlight of the evening - Crystal And Misty! It is always something special when the best tune is a brand new one, but it was instrumentally stunning, and Euros explaining that it was about cannibals at an all you can eat restaurant, before apologising if that was a spoiler, then admitting that this nugget of information was a total spoiler for everyone, was highly amusing. His banter has always been top notch and I wish more of it was on show tonight, but musically the performance was wonderful, and after an initially muddy sound, once Euros swapped to our side he was louder in the mix and it just came across as immaculate, with the right degree of shambolic charm thrown in too. I didn't record the cool instrumental break bit but did capture Euros banging his feet and head enthusiastically, and this fantastic song hasn't left my head since. I should have guessed from my experience of what a creative spirit Euros is that he'd be heavily focused on his latest album, and the more I got to know it afterwards the more I could see why it had earned the honour of perhaps his most extensive solo tour either ever or in a good many years. Euros was using a phone app as a drum machine too, asking what could possibly go wrong, and in fact finding that it all went very smoothly. At times I could really hear his signature keyboard/organ sound that forms the hallmark of many classic Gorky's records was present and correct, and it's a real tragedy that the man isn't given the respect accorded to great figures such as Brian Wilson, or even Kevin Ayers himself. Euros is certainly as brilliant as his heroes, and I would say his songs are every bit as catchy too, but sadly many people just don't have the opportunity to hear them.

I always thought that Pick It Up was a lyrically very dull song, so was shocked when Euros introduced it as a song about there being lots of dog shit around in Cardiff, which should be picked up! I shot another short video, and it's extraordinary that he can make a heartfelt awareness song like this while combining it with some pop majesty and a somewhat haunting melody. I think he also played Monocle Guy, which is an especially lovely new tune, and new single My Colander was one of the few that Tom was familiar with. My appreciation for it has grown after witnessing the video on YouTube, and it really shows Euros embracing both his poppiest and wackiest tendencies, as well as singing in a higher voice than ever before. The one setlist I can find suggests he played Godalming, but as I have no memory of it I assume it wasn't part of this show. Euros said it was about time to introduce the band, and as it was just him and Rosie that didn't take too long! I recognised but struggled to place Dust, which is yet another Cousins song, and it was this repetitive style of old song that Euros was clearly leaning towards tonight. On record Dust is much less interesting, so it was a joy to see what I'd missed out on from not having seen these songs played live before. The real revelation of the evening came toward the end though, with a slow and atmospheric introduction that morphed into what turned out to be Peanut Dispenser! I always see it as Gorky's oldest ever real tune and an absolute classic, and Euros really drew out its beauty. I shot a video that was over a minute long, and even better it turned out that Tom also knew this song because it had been on a compilation tape I'd given to him around 17 years beforehand.

The main set drew to a close with Look At My Boots, with Rosie back on drums and Euros briefly switching to guitar, as I shot my penultimate video. It is one of my favourite songs of his, and when he starts singing about looking at his fridge it just feels more and more endearing, despite being a relatively straight number musically. Euros and Rosie vacated the stage and hid behind the screen again, perhaps embracing the ludicrousness of doing such a thing in a small venue as Euros arm was sticking out and his hiding abilities weren't up to much. I would have appreciated many more classic tunes but my brief glimpse of a setlist beforehand had made me realise that it was unlikely to be a long show, sadly drawing to a close at around 10:15pm. Although if it was going to be a one song encore at least it was the absolute best tune he could play, namely Henry A Matilda Supermarketsuper! Euros indulged in perhaps his most manic foot stomping and head banging of the evening, and the video I shot strangely became muffled partway through, so I suspect in my excitement that I partially blocked the sound out. It was delivered at a cracking pace but could have done with the hilarious explanation of the lyrics we'd so enjoyed the first time we'd heard it. Rosie must have understood the Welsh lyrics though as she was highly amused by the words and/or the energy. Tom also knew this one as he'd stumbled across it on YouTube, which was a bit of luck because the compilation I'd lent him was unplayable as I'd forgot to convert all the files to MP3s. So the set drew to a close and the lucky few who'd enjoyed this wonderful performance made the noise of a much larger crowd applauding, as it was the least that Euros and Rosie deserved.

Before heading out I couldn't resist a brief chat with Euros at the merch stand, trying to encourage him to come back soon and thanking him for a great performance. I mentioned I'd last seen him with Jonny but regret not asking if a second album was in the pipeline, although I do understand that Norman Blake played a track or two with him on a later night of the tour, so fingers crossed. As I'd already purchased each album I didn't buy anything, but I did spot the album sleeve from Matthew Edwards, which was a very professional-looking shot of some buildings, and I suspect that the music inside was equally polished and worth a listen too. I don't know if Euros has enjoyed the experience of touring, or indeed how profitable or not the whole venture is, but I hope very much that he has regained the taste for it, as if not I may have to travel to wherever he is instead next time! I was also delighted that Tom took a sneaky shot of me talking to Euros with his hands on his hips and an involved expression on his face - that's something I'll treasure! We went downstairs and took a quick look at the exhibition, which was labelled as the Queer Archives Institute and some of it was bordering on gay porn. It was unexpected, and I could see why it was flat on the table so you had to consciously look at it rather than stumbling across the images by accident! Nevertheless it did make me wonder what the history and the future for this venue was, and I would be delighted to come back, even though I'm not sure if any more of my heroes are at the kind of level where such a venue would be most suited for them. They made us like them even more by brightly thanking us for visiting as we exited, heading over to the nearby street where Tom had parked his car.

We said our farewells there, then I stopped off at McDonald's for a Terry's Chocolate Orange McFlurry and a completely unnecessary wrap of the day. I received rare praise for my Street Fighter top from someone who I was pleasantly surprised was just being friendly rather than begging for change, although I am often surprised by how little attention some of my more intriguing t-shirts receive! I had to admit that I couldn't even remember where I'd got it from, although as I write this I have the vaguest of memories of it being a Christmas present from my brother before he'd gone full twat with the Jean-Michel Jarre debacle. On the way back I listening to as many Euros/Gorky's songs as I could, then moved onto Jonny as sadly I didn't have the latest album to hand. My ears weren't whistling either, which is always a good sign of a venue getting it right. The next day I was fortunate enough to have an extra hour in bed and caught up on my tasks, including some big progress in sorting out my Paris photos, ahead of my exciting weekend in Somerset and the Bristol area. It is absolutely ludicrous to think that Euros Childs had only played two songs from my 35-track best of - and none at all until the end of the set - yet had pulled such a great performance out of the bag. It's a testament to his charm, consistency and talent - plus the sheer strength of his new material - that he could pull it off, and I can only hope that Euros Childs will start touring regularly and that I won't have to wait many more years to repeat this experience, although he may struggle to make another album as appealing as House Arrest, yet will somehow rise to the challenge I feel!

Mark: 8.5/10