Atherton Online

There are a lot of tribute bands gracing the music scene these days.  The greater the band, the greater the number of tribute acts, and usually the lower the quality.  After hearing a lot about The Clone Roses, I went along to Fever with high expectations.  Once again, a family meal meant that I made it to the venue quite late, but just in time to hear the last few tracks from the support act, The Kings. For a band who really haven't been together too long, these lads really know how to warm up a gig.  Fresh from playing with the likes of Pete Doherty, Neville Staples and Chris Helme (The Seahorses), they were on top note, and it surprised me to see a lot of the audience singing along to the rousing last few songs.  They finished and left me wishing I could have got to Fever sooner and appreciated the full set. 

The place was packed out, and I went to join the myriads of people trying to get the drinks in before the headline act.  Whilst stood waiting, I pulled out my camera to get a couple of shots and to get the right settings.  Horror ensued as the instant I turned it on, it went dead. I'd purchased some on the way home from work, A six pack of a well known brand of alkaline camera batteries.  I then spent the next few mins replacing them with the others only to have the same thing happen.  I quickly left the venue to go and hunt some down, and returned about 15 mins later, fearing I'd missed the start.  Alas, I still had time to rejoin the queue at the bar, and got my drink just in time for The Clone Roses to take the stage and burst into the first song.

 

Clone Roses - This is the One - at Fever Nightclub Atherton

 

 

 The haunting melodic first bars of 'I Wanna Be Adored' swept across the room, bringing a wave of nostalgic euphoria along with it.  The minute long intro soon broke into song, with the crowd drowning out Gav Scotts vocals in the first few lines.  As the song went on though, it became clear that Gav could actually sing very well live, something which plagued Ian Brown's early career.  As in any tribute act's performance, the comparisons are there to be made, and Tony Scott on lead did a mesmerising job, taking on the almost impossible task of replicating John Squire's hypnotic finger picking.  With the inevitble pounding basslines that made the Roses have the authentic 'indie' sound that stood out from the crowd back in their time, the crowd were soon dancing and singing along in Roses heaven.  They easily launched into Waterfall, and from then on, the crowd was hooked. Classic after classic follwed, and the crowd were loving every single note.  From well worn numbers such as This Is The One, She Bangs The Drums and Fools Gold, to the more cult hits of Sugar Spun Sister, they waltzed through the set with ease.  And everyone knew, when the band left the stage, that there was no way they could leave it there, as the fantastic anthem I Am The Resurrection had yet to be played.  And play it they did.  The noise was deafening as the entire crowd and bar staff all sang along to one of the greatest indie tracks of all time, with all it's melodies, breaks and lingering riffs.  What a night!

 

Fever is turning out to be one hell of a venue for bands to perform. With a frontal stage, and a large 'arched roofed' room, the acoustics flow from all directions, and give a better overall sound than your average pub gig.Fridays seems to be the night to enjoy live bands too.  And with a lot of great young local bands booked over the next few Fridays (think Chaos Theory and Halfway To Victory in the next 2 weeks!) this is rapidly becoming a well known live music venue.  Thanks must also go to Tony for giving his customers a warm welcome and a fantastic set up.  Along with Old Isaacs, it seems Atherton now has TWO great music venues, and this from having none just a few years back. Support them and keep music live...and in Atherton!!

 

 

 

Pictures from Clone Roses at Fever Nightclub Atherton...

Would you like to see your article on this site? It could be about anything you wanted. Your specialist subject, clubs or organisations you're involved with, events you've attended, local history / issues or maybe a piece of fiction, art or poetry. You can now compose, submit and manage your articles and images directly from within the site. Once signed in, just navigate to the user menu and take a look at the "write" and "manage" article options.