Mark Joseph, The 59 Violets, Blue Sand, Pave - Hull Adelphi, May 28th 2004 By Nick Quantrill

Photograph Gallery   Pave   Blue Sand   The 59 Violets   Mark Joseph

It's undeniable that the Under The Influence nights have been a massive success at drawing new acts to the city. Dean really deserves credit for getting the bands of the moment into The Adelphi. Hull needs these kinds of gigs. I also suspect Dean is a canny promoter. Having the support bills filled by the better bands in the city means larger numbers at the door. The Adelphi was fairly bustling for this gig.

Opening the evening were Adelphi debutants, Pave. Playing first on the bill and for only 30 minutes to a crowd predominantly consisting of people more interested in the other supports is a big ask. When you factor in the eccentricities of The Adelphi, especially the limited sound-checking opportunity and the erm..interesting sound mix generated by the room, it was chance to see if Pave could pass muster in a more demanding environment.

As I went to the gig predominantly to see Pave, it could be considered slightly biased of me to say Pave rocked the room. I suppose when describing Pave, rock isn't the correct word. Pave's music rolls rather than rocks, but it's all about attitude. Pave walk the walk rather than relying on style over substance image projecting.

Pave mean it and they quickly reeled the room in. Quality song writing will never go out of fashion and that's where Pave hit the bullseye. The songs are catchy pop numbers that are well constructed and most importantly, they're not arranged in a manner that leaves you thinking that you've heard it all a thousand times before. The Adelphi is definitely the place for bands to be seen, especially on showcase nights like this, and Pave were certainly seen.

At this point I should offer my apologies for not having anything to say about Blue Sand and The 59 Violets. The oppressive heat made me sure the central heating must have been switched on to full just for fun! As shed a stone and wither away into nothing doesn't appear to be in the job description, I headed into the cool air heaven of the backroom and got a little bit too comfortable.

Time flew by and before I knew it, it was time for the headline act to take to the stage. Everybody loves an underdog and Mark Joseph has certainly shown that the underdog can have their day. Cast aside at 21 by the record industry, Mark set out to prove them wrong.

Sticking strictly to the idea of making a solo album by playing every single note and self-producing, the first version of the album had three top 40 singles within it. It's an even more remarkable story when you consider the whole enterprise was self-financed and managed. Now signed to a major label again and with a brand new sparkling version of the album ready for release, Mark is hitting the road. It's doubtful we'll see him return to the small venues once the album released.

His potential is huge, he really could be the next massive star everybody is talking about. Although the songs sometimes sound a little too influenced by his heroes, the mixture of Oasis and singer-songwriters like Damien Rice could well turn out to be a potent one. Another top night from Under The Influence. One that people may well be saying, I was there, in a few years time. You heard it here first!

Check the thisisull.com Gallery Photograph Gallery   Pave   Blue Sand   The 59 Violets   Mark Joseph Photographs courtsey and Copyright © Mo thisisull.com

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