Review by Nick.
The Robin 2, Bilston/ Wolverhampton.
The third day that i was on
the road with these guys and gal was probably the best.
When we arrived at the
venue, i was pleased with the look of it. A nice stage, a lot of lights
and the overall look was good. So unloading, setting up and sound
checking... The engineer, Jean, understood his job and apparently he was
on common grounds. The sound was excellent. And by the way the sound at
the Riga & The Point was a pleasure too.. good balanced and not too
load!
So Breathing Space arrived with some familiar locals from York.
A warm welcome and a brief chat.
When the doors went open a nice amount of people came in. And for me it
was a pleasure to see my English buddies again! A nice cheerful atmosphere
filled the venue and the pints were cold.
Picture by Adrian the
Rock;
Breathing Space.
The Show.
Breathing Space was their support act for the second time on this tour.
A nice show, built up around the enjoyable voice of Olivia, great guitar work of Mark Rowen and loads of keyboards and
laptops by the brothers Jennings. Accompanied by a solid rhythm section and with additional saxes and woodwind by
John Hart.
They sounded very good, doing a wonderful set that set up the night nicely. The crowded loved it and so did a guy
called BJ, who is dating Olivia – he had a big smile on his face.
The Reasoning.
An excerpt from "Within Cold Glass" was a nice intro to their show - mysterious, haunting and beautiful keyboard playing by Gareth. Then came a song from Rachel’s past, "Talk To Me", which may seem like a strange song to open with, but it warmed up the audience in a blink of an eye. Lee laid down a fabulous long guitar solo and it really did Rock!
As the wonderful slide playing by Dylan and heavenly vocals from Rachel strikes up next, you are expecting a ballad of massive proportions but when Dylan’s raw voice kicks in, the song becomes a Rocker. Yep, "Aching Hunger" really is an awesome rock song!
I was surprised to hear "Playing the Game", because this is a more pop song which doesn’t have the "heavy" riffs that makes up a large part of The Reasoning’s sound, but the song is of great importance and personal to Matthew for a number of reasons, plus when the middle section kicks in, everyone just seems to get lost and enjoy what is happening ion stage. The song is also a nice counterpoint and the lyrics are really my thing.
Picture by Adrian the Rock.
The show really continued to gain momentum with the audience becoming really animated and enthusiastic, as well as the band. There was a lot dancing and after every song there was a huge round of applause and cheers. The Reasoning on stage are unlike a lot of other bands I have seen as, are they not only great to watch and listen to, but they enjoy themselves so much, making jokes and really interacting with their audience. Rachel with her world wide experience is a hell of front lady. She told some interesting and fun stories, making the whole experience a pleasurable one for all.
The spoken intro to "Chasing Rainbows" made everybody sit up and listen. In a day and age where audiences generally chat through sets, it was wonderful to see and hear silence through the introductions and songs, a sign that the crowd were really into what they were experiencing by this 6 piece Rock Band. I really think each member of this band is a top musician showing that they have a magic together that is hard to find for a lot of bands and people. You could feel the enthusiasm, fun, and the joy along with the power they feel while playing.
During "Chasing Rainbows" they changed direction and did a perfect rendition of "Billie Jean" sung by Gareth & Rachel... I'm not a Michael Jackson fan, but strangely enough it made me smile and I even sang along! I must admit though that I was happy when with the reprise kicked back in; a fantastic way to blend 2 styles and come back into "Chasing Rainbow".
The new songs "Breaking The 4th Wall", "Sharp Sea" & "Dark Angel" were the highlights of the night for me, personally. These are songs with influences from the heavier Dream Theatre to the softer Marillion. Therefore my expectations of the new album are extremely high indeed!
The quality of the engineer (Shawn) and the sound system on the night really showed their quality during the haunting "Shadows of the Mind". Just marvelous - a song that is one of their trademarks; a great intro, with unique harmonies and multi-layered vocals, keyboard and bass loops along with excellent guitar work throughout. Both guitarists take the lead and both can play some wonderful slide guitar on their 7 string Ibanez & Musicman guitars, a great combination!
The band finished off the night in true rocking style with their near perfect rendition of Deep Purple’s “Stormbringer”. They do so much justice to this cover and even add extra harmonies, adding so much to the song – wonderful!
For me those three days on the road with the band were totally overwhelming and a superb experience!! My only complaint would be that it gave me an incredible desire to see this band again and again, which is improbable as they don't come to the lovely South of the Netherlands very often but I am sure that will change soon. Go see this band – NOW!!!!
Nick Gielkens.
