Patrick Wolf

Tonight Patrick Wolf is performing a secret “warm up show” before his two big nights at the Shepherds Bush Empire at the end of this week. He’s chosen the Ginglik for his homecoming performance which is just across the green from the Empire and is one of my favourite venues. Formerly a Victorian toilet, it is now a beautiful and intimate underground venue with low draped ceilings and fairy lights, sofas, psychedelic projections on the walls and a free cloakroom, which is quite a rarity in London.


Considering that fans have been stood outside in the bitter cold for well over an hour past the “doors open” time and then wait another hour inside (there are no support acts) the flamboyant Wolf still receives a warm and rapturous reception when he does take to the stage. He’s got a unique dress sense and is wearing a glistening tasselly top with cropped trousers and pixie boots and, with his wild red hair and silver headband, make-up and glitter over his arms and elfin face, he looks like a glamorous Peter Pan. There are plenty of glittering faces amongst the crowd too sparkling back at him. Tonight Wolf plays guitar, keyboard, violin and ukulele and is accompanied by drums, violin, trombone, double bass and a digital musician adding interesting sound effects, which together create a very lovely, joyous sound in this small space.

The acoustic opening lines of ‘London’, from his introspective debut album ‘Lycanthropy’ are striking - “sundark on darker streets, it’s violent times for weary feet” and the music is poetic, colourful glam-pop with a hint of goth - magical and fantastical, in a similar vein to Bat for Lashes. Wolf’s voice, which has been compared to Jacques Brel, is deep, rich and emotional.

Wolf seems slightly nervous to start with but gets into his stride quickly. He smiles a lot and charms the audience between songs with his chat, and soon kicks off the boots to strut about the stage, leaning on the violin player at times and over the audience who all want to stroke him.


He introduces ‘Demolition’ as a song he wrote when he was 16 or 17 about running away from home with a violin on his back and a few of us suspect, judging from his fresh face, that it wasn’t that long ago (apparently he’s 23 now).

He plays a couple of new songs during the set – ‘Hard Times’ and the loud and raucous ‘Vulture’, as well as a gentle song called ‘The Mysteries of Love’ taught to him by Angelo Badalamenti, the composer of music for a film about the poet Dylan Thomas (Wolf also features on the soundtrack to the film). ‘Augustine’ is requested and duly played, one of the more contemplative, quieter songs amongst all the energy. ‘Godrevy Point’ is described as one of his “special songs”, which he uses as B-sides for those that want to seek out the more personal stuff.

He finishes on a high, romping through the lively ‘Accident and Emergency’ and ‘Magic Position’ (the title track of his current critically acclaimed album), perhaps his two most recognised tracks and the most enthusiastically received. Despite his tassels having to be untangled before he can leave at the end of the set, Wolf seems very pleased with how the show went and the audience are exuberant too. It’s been an excellent night and a bonus to experience my first Wolf gig with 119 others in the Ginglik rather than the 2000 capacity Empire.

Set List:

London
Overture
Get Lost
Bluebell
Bluebells
Jacob's Ladder
Black is the Colour/Tristan
Mysteries of Love
Demolition
Vulture
Godrevy Point
Augustine
Hard Times
Accident and Emergency
Magic Position

FUTURE GIGS

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