ShareKula Shaker performing their 20th Anniversary Tour of K at Rock City Nottingham on Saturday 3rd December 2016
Images and Review by Kevin Cooper
Back in 1996 Kula Shaker’s debut album, K battled with the likes of the Spice Girls, Blur and Oasis for chart space and had a fair amount of success. Admittedly Wannabe did keep their third single, Hey Dude from hitting the number one spot but this much loved album did go multi platinum thanks to its bold and heady blend of psychedelic rock, Indian sitars and mystical Sandskrit lyrics.
Two decades and one reunion later, the band have just released their fifth album, K2.0 which front man Crispian Mills has described as being a ‘companion piece’ to their debut; but it was K’s anniversary that the band celebrated at Rock City last night.
Opening with Hey Dude, they then played the album in full with only a break for Shower Your Love from Peasants, Pigs And Astronauts. They launched into K’s hippyish double header Grateful When You’re Dead/Jerry Was There, whilst the albums celebration of life on the road, 303 was a particular highlight.
Showing no signs of age, they filled the set with rapturous sing alongs to the likes of Tattva, Into The Deep and Start All Over. Sounding epic live, Mills is a virtuoso guitar player, playing as fast and loose as he can without compromising the songs. When he sings he is entirely lost in the moment but still has a brilliant vocal range.
For the encore two new songs were given an outing, with the Dylan-esque 33 Crows and a delightful Infinite Sun. Great Hosannah was there as was Govinda which had the crowd belting out word perfect Sandskrit and provided one of the evening’s most memorable moments.
With Kula Shaker enjoying a bit of a renaissance at the moment, and with festival bookers looking for acts for 2017, then on this showing they must be in with a chance.
