Del Amitri performing at The Royal Concert Hall Nottingham on Wednesday 15th September 2021
Images and Review by Kevin Cooper
You wait nineteen years for a new album and then a pandemic comes along forcing everything to be put on hold. But last night at the Royal Concert Hall Del Amitri were finally able to give a live outing to this year’s comeback album, Fatal Mistakes, together with some of their hits and some obscure tracks from throughout their career.
Dressed all in denim, front man Justin Currie set the scene for the evening with opener When We Were Young before introducing new songs Musicians And Beer and All Hail Blind Love which were very well received. The audience showed their appreciation for the effortlessly melodic favourite Always The Last To Know which came early in the set.
The emotionally sad Driving With The Brakes On served to remind just how good Del Amitri are, as did an exquisite version of one of Currie’s and Harvie’s greatest songs, the fantastic Move Away Jimmy Blue. With new song You Can’t Go Back being a real highlight, they began their run-in to the end with Here And Now, and fans favourite Spit In The Rain which had the crowd singing along.
With Currie’s voice being superb throughout, soulful, true and affecting, they ended the main set with Stone Cold Sober which saw him spitting out the words with as much venom as he did when he recorded it over thirty years ago.
For the encore Nothing Ever Happens garnered a massive cheer after just the first strum of Currie’s guitar, their talent brought to life by a wonderful accordion solo. Finishing with Be My Downfall their whole stage persona had been a fine balancing act of performing serious and emotional songs with some rock posturing and just honest down to earth musicianship and last night Del Amitri got it just right.