The Crickets Are Calling...

It is 23:20 on Friday 07 March and I have just arrived home, devastated by the performance of Petunia & the Vipers in Belfast's Empire Music Hall.

Now, anyone who read my review of last years show might be thinking, "oh no, not again." but no, not this time. This time my night has only been ruined by having to leave dear Petunia and his band on the venue's stage in order to get home and relieve the babysitter.

Tonight's show was simply everything that the previous one had not been. Petunia still has a stop-you-in-your-tracks voice. He still has a band of incredible musicians. And tonight, they were engaging, they were committed, and they were stunning. Granted they were also a little lost, Petunia asking who had caught their previous show "in Dublin", but he made up for it by squeezing references to Belfast into a few songs and all was forgiven.

We got old songs, we got new songs, we got anecdotes and we even got a set of songs completely stripped back to acoustic instruments and the band huddled around a single microphone, which despite the large venue and busy, verging on noisy, crowd showcased everything good about this band.

But again the absolutely highlight was the beguiling solo track that Petunia played alone last time he was here and again tonight. I now know that the song is called Inside of You and that it is the title track of P&tV's next album. And while I have already used this word I don't know how else to describe it, it was stunning. A deceptively complex melody held together but Petunia and that voice, that holds so much complexity, depth and character. I don't believe I was alone in thinking this as it was the first time the entire room fell completely quiet.

And while it may sound odd, the best way I can describe the Vipers is workman-like. I do mean that as a compliment. They made me feel that they were here to do a job and to do it to the absolute best of their abilities because it is important. My enjoyment in watching a band perform is very much connected to how that band presents its performance. A bored, uninterested band will quickly spoil the most technically proficient show. A feeling that the Vipers do in-fact enjoy the job they are lucky enough to have spilled from the stage, catching on Petunia as it floated around him, the whole band beginning to really loosen up as the night progressed.

And then I had to leave. I stuck out the entire show last time despite its shortcomings to hear Petunia sing, but tonight, with Petunia on the absolute top of his game I underestimated how long the show might last. I genuinely wouldn't be surprised to hear that Petunia kept going, that things got wilder, that tables were overturned, that clothes got discarded and that lives were changed. And that I damn well missed it all.

I can't take back what I said last time, but I can now gleefully confirm that the "dark mountain voodoo" that hung over Petunia & the Vipers last time they were in Belfast, was most definitely shaken loose tonight. Petunia will change your life, if you let him.

Hornby

Petunia & the Vipers played the Empire Music Hall on Friday 07 March, presented by Moving on Music (link below). Find P&tV online at the link below or by searching PetuniaTheVipers on Facebook.