Doll & The Kicks/The Foxes Live @ Portland Arms Cambridge

Written By: Mark on February 7, 2010 2 Comments

The Portland Arms Cambridge is a compact venue but with surprisingly good acoustics. My congratulations must go to the sound engineer who brought out the best from both bands. First up were The Foxes! Having been an admirer of this band since 2007, I had never actually seen them live before.

The nine song set included a mixture of old and new tracks with great three part harmonies and a guitar sound that is honed to perfection. There really is something special about guitars played properly through decent valve amps. A real feelgood factor abounds from the band live. Tracks from the forthcoming E.P such as “Country Low” have a more psychedelic, 60’s leaning than the in-your-face sound of first single “Trauma Town”. When heard live “Something About You” reminded me so much of vintage Beatles. They are tight, interactive and a real joy to hear live. It all bodes well for the upcoming releases and tour. I think it may well be a big year for the band – it certainly deserves to be. They are both relevant and good, something lacking in so many bands I see live.

Despite having horrendous vehicle problems Doll & The Kicks made it to the venue. Live they remind me of Souixsie & The Banshees a la 1979, albeit somewhat more accomplished and polished. They totally tore through a ten song set, delivering everything that the crowd expected. Hannah Scanlon, a.k.a. Doll, certainly knows how to manipulate a willing crowd who sung and hung on her every utterance. Strange then that I should pick the more genteel “If you Care” as the showstopper. Doll really seemed to put her heart and soul into it. The time the band spent on the road opening for Morrissey has certainly been time well spent. If you have some spare pennies I can think of a hell of a lot of worse things to do than catch them live on the rest of the extensive, self-financed tour.j

The Foxes – Your Fire