They said they had hung up live gigs for good. It was such a bold statement that we believed it. However drummer Dave is having a birthday, and there is a new line up afoot, so The Protectors are returning for a show in Leeds tonight, armed also with new songs.
Milos is a tiny venue. And it's like a tin can submarine. A bit like what you expect those retro aluminium caravans from the Fifties to be like inside. And it's crammed to the mirror tiled ceiling, even early on for support act Algiers.
The Sheffield duo gain the crowd's attention early on, with their set up similar to this fucking Tank and The White StripesÂ… drummer and guitarist only. Songs like 'For The Drunken Sailor Swaying' have interested me before the show, and the set includes more of the same.
They have a tendency to play notes out of tune mid song, just to mix it up a bit I imagine. One song unfortunately does this a little too long, but the sound that the two guys create is great indie pop punk. 'You're The Captain' finishes their set well.
After a quick breather by most outside in the frankly freezing Leeds night air it's back for the highly anticipated one night only return of Wakefield's The Protectors. Now the trio are armed with a female backing vocalist and a keyboardist, so the sounds tonight have those extra layers.
There's a selection of tracks from their previous work, namely the awesome 'Honeymoon' and 'Shake The Moves' from debut album 'Can't Shake The Moves'. 'Hard Times' and 'Four Sevens' from the EP and Tee In A Can release bridge the start and end of the set, plus the brilliant 'Overtime'.
The rest of the set is lovely new stuff. The new addition of female backing vocals and the keyboard create another level; a big sound in this small room. It is quite loud too for the space, not that I'm complaining! The comedy banter from the original trio is still in force too. Birthday boy Dave sips red wine behind the drums, tall bassist Matthew Parkes finds he has more room in the pit then on the stage, and Chris Charlton is on top form as ever. It's fairly dark now after the bright Algiers setup, as the band have decorated everything in Christmas lights. Like you do.
The crowd soak up all the new songs as they would the older stuff, the room continues to bake and the expensive bottled beer is devoured. Let's hope there are more gigs like this from The Protectors, maybe not out at sea though in this mirrored cupboard.
Set list
Hard Times
Honeymoon
Belt
Overtime
South Carolina
Holy Island Ice
The Stats Ball
No Satellites
Uniform
Shake The Moves
Old Mics
Reminder
Four Sevens
FUTURE GIGS
sorry, we currently have no gigs listed for this act.