New addition to the Moshville team Emma took her dad all the way up to Dundee from Glasgow to witness rock royalty. Was it worth the trip? We’ll let her tell you…
Opener Liam Bailey did a great job starting the show. With his reggae, soul and rock songs he was able to pull in a lot of the audience early on and keep people engaged. The more chilled set had people swaying and nodding along. His music seemed to engulf the venue with good vibes. I could hear people around us after talking about how much they enjoyed his set and wanted to hear more from him. I’d definitely recommend giving him a listen.
Having been raised on Paul Weller songs, getting to see him perform live was a surprisingly emotional experience for me. I had the great joy of being able to bring my dad, who’s been a lifelong Paul Weller fan, along to the gig and being able to share the experience with him was a great privilege.
It’s hard to believe Paul Weller’s career has been going since the Jam was formed in the 70’s. Yet there I was, listening to him sing almost exactly how he sounds on the studio albums over forty years later. His voice didn’t seem to strain at all during the 2 hour set time, still sounding just as good at the end as he did at the start. The man himself continuously impressed me throughout the night showing off his incredible musical talent not just with his vocals but by also expertly playing guitar, bass, piano and even tambourine at different points during the set.
This unageing talent made it no surprise that the entire UK tour sold out. He had the venue filled with mainly the older crowd who would have been following Weller’s career for decades but also a good number of younger people as well.
Paul Weller first took to the stage with a guitar as the fully packed venue erupted in excitement. He started the night off with “Cosmic Fringes” from his 2021 album Fat Pop. A great song to get the crowd started.
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The crowd was taken through Weller’s career with songs not just from his solo career but also from his time with The Jam and The Style Council.
One of the stand out moments of the night was when Weller took a moment to acknowledge and remind people of the men, women and children who are currently fighting, escaping and dying in Gaza. The heartfelt moment was followed by a dedication of The Style Council song “My Ever Changing Moods”. A fitting tribute. A Palestinian flag was hung on stage the entire night, a never leaving reminder of Paul Weller’s of the citizens of Gaza.
Weller hit us with three big crowd pleasers in a row starting with an amazing performance of “Hung up”, which had the crowd cheering from the first few notes and singing along.
Then played “Shout to the Top” a The Style Council hit from 1985 which caused another uproar of excitement as people danced and continued singing the whole way through. The band did an incredible job on this song and there was an impressive saxophone solo. He then hit us with “Start!” from The Jam’s 1980 album Sound Affects that somehow got the crowd even more excited than the previous two songs.
My personal highlight of the evening was when he played “Broken Stones” from his 1995 album Stanley Road. A song both my dad and I have a great personal attachment to, it immediately swept me with a wave of emotion as those first few words were sung. I’m not ashamed to it I shed a couple tears. The song had the audience singing along, hands waving. Weller’s vocal skills were shown off yet again. There’s certain songs that just hit you like a truck, in the best way, when you hear them performed live and this was one of them. “Broken Stones” is in my opinion one of Weller’s greatest works, it’s a beautiful song that you could still feel the weight of even after it was finished. Truly brilliant.
The band blew me away again not long after with “Wild Woods” in what was described as a “musical wonder” by my father.
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For the second last song of the evening we were treated with “That’s Entertainment”, The Jam’s hit from the 80’s, that immediately had people wooing, clapping and jumping. The crowd ed Weller in singing the chorus and most of the people in seats were now on their feet dancing with arms in the air.
The final song of the night was none other than “Town Called Malice” , the Jam’s biggest hit and the biggest song of Paul Weller’s career. By this point there was not a single person not singing along, Weller leaving parts of the chorus unsung so the crowd could fill in. Everyone seemed to be having a brilliant time singing and dancing along.
Overall, Weller delivered a powerful performance that cemented his status as a mod rock legend. He and his band left the stage to a standing ovation that seemed unending. For all lucky enough to have obtained tickets it was a night to and for those going to dates… you’re in for a fantastic night!
Header image by Nicole Nodland
