Ambulance LTD

There's something quite exciting about hearing a band for the first time, but it can be quite a nerve wracking experience if that first time is seeing them live. You build up expectations of how they will look and sound but may have to live with the possibility of being let down.

In the case of Ambulance LTD, they too were stepping into the unknown, an audience largely made up of Oldham Castle regulars who would have been here had your Uncle Fred been on stage playing his ukulele (although they might have had a few questions for the management afterwards). Except Johnny Marr, whose presence caused much excitement.

Which makes it all the more extraordinary that they chose to open with a 3 minute, seemingly jammed, instrumental. It's hard to decide whether they were audaciously confident or utterly foolish. Whichever, it wasn't the best attention grabber.

As they launched into forthcoming single 'Stay Where You Are', those expecting some home town New York cool were taken aback. This was more blissed out sun-kissed West Coast fayre, although its February release date won't capture the mood of a nation how this warm tune might should we have a summer this year. Still, the brooding bass, low key vocal and minimal guitar, mixed will yellow lighting had such a calming effect, even the obligatory over-drunk punter paused from his pointing and gurning to chill a little.

For half an hour though, it was largely flat as the music, pleasant as it was, blended into the ether. That feeling of largely background music was enhanced by the audience treating them like a house band and carrying on their conversation while they played.

Strangely, it was when Marcus Congleton changed guitar and went acoustic that they began to grab your attention, and having done that, they hit you with 'Heavy Lifting' that flows like Snow Patrol's 'Chocolate' and is the first track to have a hint of 'hit record'.

For the naturally curious, this leaves you with a feel of wanting to hear more, as it has to be better than the rest of the rather uninspiring performance. Although Mr Marr himself seemed to like it, warmly congratulating the band afterwards. Or perhaps like the rest of us, he saw there was something there, and he was trying to encourage it out of them.

FUTURE GIGS

sorry, we currently have no gigs listed for this act.