Get Cape Wear Cape Fly, supported by Dartz! and Keith.
Goole Vikings Hotel.
13/10/06
Goole is not known for its music scene. Let’s be honest, hands up how many of you even know where Goole is? My bet is not many can say without looking it up. However, nights like this show that even the smallest of northern towns can have a successful local music scene – and a turnout of 400+ was not only a credit to Dave, who triumphantly put on the gig, but also to the townsfolk of Goole who turned out in their droves. Either that or GCWCF is a hell of a lot bigger than even I imagined…
I arrived at the spacious Hotel venue to see DARTZ! already on stage. I managed to capture about four songs and they sound good – there’s a jazzy, stop-start indie-rock feel to them, and they certainly know how to keep the crowd’s interest. I didn’t see enough to make a total judgement, but I did see enough to know I’d be more than happy to catch them again. (7.5)
KEITH, on the other hand, are a bit bobbins. Based in Manchester, I only managed about three or four songs before I was left. I can’t remember all that much about them – and I wasn’t drinking – which probably says it all. Inoffensive, keyboard-driven rock without any catchy choruses or memorable bits, they sort of chugged along without really catching too many people’s attention. Maybe an off night, maybe I was too excited for Get Cape, but I won’t be too disappointed if Keith and I don’t cross paths again in the near future. (4)
The room very quickly fills up as Goole turns out in force or GET CAPE WEAR CAPE FLY. This is the first time I’ve seen Sam since he signed for a major and acquired a backing band, and it has made his sound fuller and thicker. He’s more confident as a frontman too, while his voice is as strong as ever. And if you didn’t know just how big he’d become, the singalongs that engulfed ‘Glasshouses’, ‘Call Me Ishmael‘ and the “ba bas” during ‘Chronicles…part 1’ show that the whole country is beginning to sit up and listen – not just a bunch of emo kids. ‘War of the Worlds’ sounds better live than on CD, and by the end – a riotous version of ‘Abracadabra’ – there’s men in animal suits and a mini stage invasion, bringing home the fact that Sam is still ‘one of us’, even if he’s now a top 40 artist. Goole laps it up, as other towns and cities across the UK are doing too and, to be honest, it’s completely deserved. The sky is the limit – just pull on the cape and watch him fly. (9)