11-12-2009Live reviews - Newton Faulkner
Rebuilt stronger and better than ever
If you are a regular Rocksnail reader you'll probably have already read my review of Mr Faulkner's "Rebuilt by Humans" and so will understand just how high my opinion of this musical genius already stands. If you are just a casual reader however, I'd still urge you to check it out and see if it gives you some depth of information on the great man's latest musical offering.
The Lowry is an impressive venue and was already two thirds full when the support started. Melbourne based Aussie gal Lisa Mitchell ambled on with elements of her band and treated us to some eyebrow raising cuts from her new, imminently arriving album 'Wonder'. Opening with 'Neapolitan Dreams', her sound was quite refreshing, falling somewhere between a less intense Cranberries mixed with a sprinkle of Edie Brickell-cum-Suzanne Vega washed down with a large helping of Australian sunshine. With a set including 'Pirouette', Coin Laundry', 'Stevie' and a thoroughly absorbing rendition of Dire Straites' 'Romeo and Juliette', I, along with a really healthy portion of the Lowry, was suitably impressed with the gentle and nervous looking quirky girl dwarfed by her acoustic guitar and I made a mental note to delve further into her musical world.
After a brief set change, the lights went down and on 'he' came. No intro tape whipping the crowd up to frenzy, no fanfare crescendo signalling his arrival, just a spotlight cutting through the darkness highlighting this self confessed hairy and weird looking guy with no shoes on and an acoustic guitar strapped to him. With no frills, just a simple "good evening", Newton launched straight into 'I took it out on you' from his new album and his connection with the crowd was instant. That soulful voice, rock steady and as powerful as a Brawn GP engine coupled with his guitar wizardry literally hypnotized the audience, captivating us all and placed us in the palm of his hand.' I need something' and the more up tempo 'To the light' preceded the excellent current single 'If this is it', which saw Newton move from his standing position centre stage to his elevated sitting position set back to the right 'in his office' as he called it. By doing this he could utilise both feet on his floor instrument whilst playing his guitar �" which he proceeded to show on the screen above his head for the people who didn't know what he was doing.
Back to being front and centre, Newton's godly interpretation of Massive Attack's 'Teardrop', (complete with a warm dedication to a father and son duo Colin and Connor's untimely death in their car, as requested there and then from a fan in the audience), caused many an eye to moisten and much skin to ripple with goose bumps in a truly touching passage of music as executed by the dreadlocked dude. His normal guitar was then replaced by a bastardised ukulele looking toffee hammer sized mini axe, signalling 'She's got the time' 1 and 2, which were delivered with stunning precision coupled with a large portion of humour. The marvellous foot tapping 'Lipstick Jungle' saw our man go back to his elevated office and unveil Newtons 2, 3 and 4 on the video screen opposite him. They then reproduced the playing of the extra wind instrument in sync during the song, as he admitted afterwards he couldn't justify paying someone to come on the road with him to play 20 seconds worth of notes for him during the tune. The effect was spot on, adding rapturous amounts of laughter to the wondrous amazement of his performance. Staying up in his office, he produced a cassette tape of the old C90 variety with the strings passages recorded on it for next newie, 'Won't let go'. He then put said tape into a small cassette player next to him and proceeded to play his guitar with his hands whilst banging out rhythms on the guitar body, all the time playing the organ like instrument on the floor with his feet and sing over everything note perfect whilst keeping perfect time with the pre recorded strings accompaniment coming from the tape player. The effect was absolutely outstanding. I'd be very interested to hear what Simon Cowell would have to say about a performance like that as the entire Lowry venue was literally gobsmacked. E did show he was human after the song by admitting playing it live was literally exhausting. Give that man a can of Red Bull and stand well back ....
After a brief discussion on his love of the musical term 'segue', we were then treated to the heartfelt 'Resin on my heartstrings' which then flowed effortlessly into a non album track (he said he couldn't get it to fit anywhere) hence the segue discussion. 'This Town' then led to the massive crowd pleaser and personal fave 'Dream Catch Me' which had The Lowry singing his currently biggest hit along with him; it was goosebups time again which lasted all the way through the next song, new album opener 'Badman'.
Responsibility for hitting the absolute pinnacle of the night fell to an absolutely blinding 'U.F.O.', complete with dancing alien and crowd participation singing "UFO, if you wanna take the time to say, Hello. I've been waitin' in a field to say, UFO, if you wanna take the time to say, Hello" and what a spectacle this all made. We had dazzling lights, projected UFO images on one screen, Newton himself leading the soiree like an orchestra conductor, a reverent and enamoured crowd singing and clapping like wild Hari Krishna monks on bad acid and a dancing alien on the other screen. Where else in the world would you get such an eclectic mix of entertainment sources?
Enchanting Rebuilt by Humans track 'Lets get together' picked up the baton once the UFO fervour had died down slightly, only to see energy levels and crowd participation pick straight up for another personal fave 'Gone in the Morning', complete with Newton's mother kissing pirates with rabies routine for whipping up crowd participation.
Highlighting his disconsolate view of encore routines, instead of going off, taking five and coming back on, Newton told us how it was more of a surprise for him to actually stay on and play a short song 'Lullaby' - in the gap before ending his set proper with new album closer 'I'm not giving up yet'. And with that, Elvis left the building.
I count myself lucky enough to be able to say I've seen some of the world's major acts play some of their most high profile gigs/events in the twenty something years I've been on the circuit, yet I've never seen a performer/performance quite like the one I saw at The Lowry in Newton Faulkner. Not only is he a six string virtuoso or a musical genius with other instruments, the guy is damn funny and is an extremely likeable individual to boot. What his audience witnessed wasn't just a live show it was verging on a religious experience. And if the world converted to Newtonity or Faulknerism, instead of the incomprehensible stupidity displayed by the moronic warring religious factions that are currently killing each other everyday, the world would be a far better place. Outstanding.
16-12-2009Album review - Newton Faulkner
A lofty weight of expectation upon this Sophmore effort
I was a late discoverer of Newton Faulkner (or Sam Newton Battenberg Faulkner to give his full title), as it was actually a chance encounter of one of his previous singles "Gone in the Morning" on the Chris Moyles Radio One breakfast show one morning that I first heard his work and I was immediately hooked/captivated. The purchasing of 'Handbuilt by Robots' rapidly followed and he has been on heavy rotation on my iPod ever since so "Rebuilt..." has been one of my most hotly anticipated releases of the year.
Bearing in mind the volume of sheer heaviness I normally listen to, I can liken listening to Newton to curling up in your own massive soft, enveloping duvet after returning home from a warzone. Like a huge breath of fresh, clean air amongst the tornado of regurgitated, stale and vacuous pap that makes up today's music scene, Newton's material floats through your mind, painting bright vivid mental pictures of real life that we can all relate to in some shape or form and more often than not they put a positive spin on your mindset and attitude. That, my musical comrades, is the sign of a class act.
First song proper 'Badman' seemingly picks up right where "Handbuilt" left off. The now instantly recognisable trademark of acoustic virtuosity leads into a great song, however there is more. Much more. Not only do we have Newton and his guitar, it's the closest I have heard to a full on 'band' sounding effort. There is always so much more to him than meets the ear. His fretboard gymnastics are still present however a little more subdued which gives room to showcase a fuller song writing approach rather than one man on a stool and his guitar from his previous material. Don't worry though; there is still plenty of that to follow.
Following Badman, the more intimate Newton then comes back into view with 'I took it out on You', the more familiar solo acoustic side of him standing under the spotlight, one man, his dreads, his heart and his talent open wide for all to see, complete with soul-searching romantic sadness and repentant lyrics and vocal lines. As ever his work is slightly enhanced by his supporting but never dominating soundscapes which gently add a deeper dimension to the proceedings. Like "Handbuilt...", "Rebuilt..." has quite a few brief interludes/little between song ditties to keep interest ticking over and these never detract from the actual 'songs' on offer by our dreadlocked messiah as some do from lesser artists.
First single 'If this is it' then gently weaves its way through my headphones and immediately the hairs on my neck stand to attention. This is a magnificent song, straight to the point, hinting equal parts Joshua Tree era U2, Sting and the sing-along capability of Dream Catch Me, it leaves me in awe of the effect this guy can have on his listener. The building of the momentum is well executed, bringing the song to a massive hook laden chorus which then stays in your head for ages afterwards. Repeat, repeat, and repeat, one listen simply isn't enough.
Ballad 'Resin on my Heartstrings' is a melancholy Autumn walk through the park, brown leaves blowing around your feet while you reminisce on the 'what could have been' feelings life gives you. Newton always manages to get me thinking whilst listening to him, whether its nostalgia, a love lost, a love gained or just simply a 'life's alright' mental fix, his delivery knows no bounds and nor should it.
Another standout track, 'Lipstick Jungle' sees Newton picking up the tempo to his finger clicking, good time, funky material which again stays in your head for days. It's the harmonica harmony within the song that really gets into my head like the antithesis of Hannibal Lecter. Once it's in there, it's never coming out.
'Been thinking about it' is more in line with your initial idea of Newton �" stripped down, bare bones, man guitar and voice. As thought provoking on life as ever, "If life's so short, what's the cost of working day and night 5 days a week, you say you hate it but it makes ends meet �" been thinking 'bout it" or even his own mortality " My time here on earth could be a fragile and fading thing but if this is to end right now I'd go with a grateful smile �" been thinking 'bout it" It's a soft song much akin to the pleasurable feeling of the sea lapping around your ankles when your smashed at 4am on the beach on holiday..
'Lets get Together' picks up the tempo with its subtle brass background and foot tapping beat which again gets into your cranium, gets your hands clapping and sells your soul to the rhythm devil. 'She's got the Time 2' interlude is a great little ditty taken straight from the original but this time with our man declaring "She's got the time but she STILL doesn't give it to me". Last time she said not to his offer of a Haribo, now she's declining his offer of a canapé...!
"Wont let Go" is yet another album highlight for me and its just like a Milky Way �" its light, fluffy and it definitely wont ruin your appetite for more Newton. Up tempo, catchy and infectious, his use of strings for the main body of the song is another example of limitless musical imagination. "First Time" is back to Newton offering his melancholy slant of retrospect to the world, a simple song comprising of him, guitar, voice and a driving beat. Simple, yes but very very effective.
"Over and Out" showcases Newton's impressive vocal range and simply begs for single status, radio airplay and further exposure to the world. Another really catchy song, I'll be very surprised if it doesn't appear in the future. "So Much" is more classic Newton with gentle guitar, vocal acrobatics and more heartfelt words finding him wishing he had so much more of his special someone around him.
The final pairing of "This Town and "I'm not giving up yet" are again more Newton the solo artist as we all know and love, baring his innermost. No massive accompaniments, no orchestras, brass bands etc, just Newton. It does what it says on the tin.
I've heard a few comments about how the album slowly kind of grinds to a halt with a lacklustre finish, however I'm going to temper that with my opinion which is this.; you listen to Newton Faulkner material for a reason, and that is to hear great musical compositions accompanied by a great voice and a massive portion of amusement and more often than not, honesty within his lyrics. Yes, at times his music can be slow and melancholic, yes I suppose it could be misconstrued as dull if you are looking for something to pick you up and throw you around and ultimately, yes it might not be for you. If you don't like that side of his stuff go and listen to Fallout Boy.
This album is great. Go buy it and get your tickets to see him asap or you're gonna miss out.
