15 November 2008

Andi and George Band at the Holy Grail

| johnboy
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The band are probably still playing as I type this. But it’s been a peculiar night so here I am amusing you, instead of me.

The Holy Grail is an appalling venue in so many ways. The lighting is a nightmare and the sound is worse. Tonight there was a gifted sound man working the console and it was still awful.

But a huge crowd wanted to bop along to the Andi and George Band so suitable venues available at the right price are hard to find.

It started well with a gorgeous belly dancer working her magic, only slightly spoiled by her need to keep rushing to her ipod (plugged into the sound system) to change tracks.

Then the band started banging a drum from the middle of the crowd, and did a little pied piper / conga line act to rev the crowd up.

Then the horn section lit up from the DJ box high above the stage. The enormous ensemble group found their places, crowding one of the larger stages in town, and proceeded to rock the house.

Despite the atrocious setting a large part of the crowd had a great time bopping to the dancey beats of Andi and George.

The chai sellers from The Front purveying their wares were a special highlight at the back of the room.

Lighting up the evening, a pink and black clad burlesque troupe arrived to promote the upcoming Jester Ball.

Great band, great music, barely managing to rise above the limitations of the venue.

Slideshow below:

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Well, I must say it’s very civic-minded of the Grail to go to such lengths to make the Uni bar look good ….

*chuckle*

Shame it went that way, though.

Joe Canberran12:07 pm 16 Nov 08

one of my favorite bands not quite ruined by a crap venue. The holy grail really does look as if it could be great but the sound there is so abysmal I had to sit outside.

I was dead tired and not really in the mood so that contributed. If I had been more energized then rather than the exit I may well have hit the dance floor, along with what was quite a good crowd.

I know that with the full band the Andi & George experience has a little less Andi & George but when you have two people with voices as beautiful as theirs and local singers the quality of Alice Cottee as back up singers and the only way you can tell that they are singing is because you can see their mouths moving then something is wrong. The sound from the brass and the percussion sections was good but everything else was lost in the din that was the amplified noise of drunken revelers trying to talk to each other, particularly on the mezzanine level.

Unfortunately no matter what the quality of the band I think I’ll pass next time there is a gig at the grail.

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