Headline Act: Aynsley Lister Band
Support: Rude Tiger
Venue: Falmouth Pavilions
Date: 26/11/2010
It was a bitterly cold Friday night in Falmouth, but the weather didn’t deter a healthy turnout at the Pavilions to see acclaimed blues guitarist Aynsley Lister. Lister has been touring prolifically since the release of Equilibrium (2009) and the tightness of his band’s performance is unmistakable. His more recent live session release Tower Sessions is a testament to the current high calibre shows that contains some new material and a long awaited recorded cover of Prince’s ‘Purple Rain’.
Support came from currently unsigned Rude Tiger, a hard rock power trio from Devon. Their presence was immediately stated and not due to their work onstage. The merch stall was all theirs, and what a stall it was! An excess of t-shirts, CDs, badges and an extremely outgoing band rep was all a bit too much to take in with no Aynsley Lister material in sight. As for the musical side of things, Rude Tiger proved that they were more than just a desperate pub band looking for a break. The trio delivered a memorable thirty minutes of original material that was powerful, tight and highly enjoyable. Consistency was lost during their set, a lack of addictive crushing riffage was apparent in certain numbers. However, notable experimentation with time signatures and rhythms kept things interesting yet trying to get the audience to clap along to 6/4 amusingly didn’t get the vibe that was intended.
When Aynsley and his band took to the stage it was evident that a greater force had arrived. Opening with ‘With Me Tonight’ was a platform for Lister to show his renowned solo abilities. A mid-tempo number, the track stretched around the ten minute mark. The set could’ve sounded larger had it exploded into one of his faster tracks such as ‘Soul’ or ‘Hurricane’ given that the crowd had just been exposed to Rude Tiger’s hard hitting rock anthems. A mild complaint indeed, but the night’s set could have done with a few more of his harder hitting hard rock numbers.
We didn’t have to wait long for ‘What’s it all About’. Lister’s signature solo that has earned its place as one of the most emotive guitar solos of all time. If you haven’t heard it already, imagine something in the vein of Pink Floyd’s ‘Comfortably Numb’ and Fleetwood Mac’s ‘I’m So Afraid’. The power of that one track was the highlight of the evening and in a way it was a pity that it came so early in the set.
There were moments of amusement early on as plaster began to fall from the ceiling directly above where Lister was standing. It seemed that even inside the shelter of the Pavilions, there was no getting away from something that looked like snow. Thankfully the ceiling didn’t collapse and Lister completed another inspiring performance. The encore of Deep Purple’s ‘Hush’ fused with Stevie Wonder’s ‘Superstition’ ignited the audience one last time and Lister’s connection with his fans was as strong as his stage presence and charisma. The Aynsley Lister Band have played Cornwall regularly in recent years and his following in the area has steadily grown. Throughout the show audience members were singing along to every song and his loyalty to the area has clearly paid off. However, the tour schedule may show that they won’t be coming back this way for a while yet. So for now, pick up a copy of Tower Sessions and expose yourself to the magic of Aynsley Lister live!
Ratings:
Anysley Lister Band [9/10]
Rude Tiger [8/10]
Reviewed by Daniel Aston 27/11/2010
