Wedgwood Rooms, Portsmouth

The Courteeners are supposed to be in their infancy; still finding their feet, quietly waiting for the world to notice them in a few years time. But nobody seems to have told them this. So, with minimal effort, they have found themselves with a giddying 500,000 Myspace hits, ten songs available online and Q Magazine’s influential backing.

With the healthy balance of songs that hit you immediately or unravel gloriously with each listen, I’d already made my mind up that I was going to enjoy this gig. Press coverage to date has labelled outspoken front man Liam Fray as media un-friendly, arrogant, self-opinionated and egotistical, drawing focus away from their music. It’s true that Liam is not afraid to tell it like it is, but what matter is this when the music is so perfect? I proceeded to the Wedgwood Rooms, an intimate and attractively-lit venue in darkest Portsmouth to see what the fuss was about.

Support act Kid Harpoon initially sparked no more enthusiasm in the audience than you would expect from an unknown act. But, as each song got progressively stronger, the crowd began to thaw. Solidly well-written riffs and sweet melodies were a class above expectation and this evening the band will have gained a number of eager Google searches. As one of the best support acts I have seen in a long time, the two-piece created an impressive and expansive sound.

During the interval I had hoped to sneak out for a cigarette but the punters weren’t allowed out of the venue. Torn between obeying the law and succumbing to a nicotine rage, I took support from the understanding merchandiser peddling over-priced T-shirts and lighters. After 10 minutes of ear-bending, I noticed a growing number of people asking for autographs and photos with the charming man who had enlightened me to his products.

Of course, I knew he was The Courteeners’ Liam all along; I just didn’t want to make him feel awkward. Luckily, I hadn’t made a complete fool of myself and took solace in this newly found ‘friendship’. For the next quarter of an hour Liam rubbished my preconceptions. He was natural and ecstatic; open to fan’s advances, humble and at times almost uncomfortable with the attention. It was obvious this was not someone whose ego needed its own seat.
Moments after Liam took to the stage, The Courteeners launched into ‘Aftershow’, which started slowly with a glisteningly clear guitar rift before transforming unexpectedly into a bouncy anthem, the teenage crowd jumping rhythmically on their tiptoes. “Evening all!” announced Liam, to emphatic screams. ‘Kimberly’ borrowed some of Oasis’s swagger and chords, changing tempo and proudly referencing everything from Curtis Mayfield to John Lee Hooker. As one potential anthem segued into another, it’s easy to picture The Courteeners playing to massive crowds, each audience member singing the words to their songs with gusto. ‘Slowdown’, ‘Bide Your Time’, ‘Fallowfield Hillbilly’, ‘No You Didn’t No You Don’t’ and ‘Acrylic’ followed in quick succession – Bang bosh! Liam then took centre stage to play a couple of songs alone. One tune, entitled ‘Yesterday, Today’, impressed me so much that I found myself muttering “Fuck the Beatles – this blows ‘Yesterday’ out of the water!”

Put simply, The Courteeners love what they’re doing, producing great songs with poignantly clever lyrics and anthemic choruses. This is a band that has listened, and learned. Tonight, I got it, we all did. The Courteeners are on their way to the stars. I haven’t felt this way about a band in a long time – catch them in an intimate venue while you still can.

Words by Anthony / Pictures by Robert Thomas.