{"id":1124,"date":"2017-10-05T12:30:30","date_gmt":"2017-10-05T12:30:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/live-review-the-xcerts-with-big-spring-the\/"},"modified":"2023-01-18T21:02:54","modified_gmt":"2023-01-18T21:02:54","slug":"live-review-the-xcerts-nottingham-2017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/live-review-the-xcerts-nottingham-2017\/","title":{"rendered":"Live Review: The Xcerts with Big Spring &#8211; The Bodega, Nottingham &#8211; 30\/09\/2017"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"tmblr-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/78.media.tumblr.com\/b0c1039a5cf4a2cff48cd44843c08709\/tumblr_oczgq9lfGb1r8no6so1_r130_1280.jpg\" width=\"250em\" alt=\"\" title=\"\"><\/figure>\n<p>If you\u2019ve been following their recent activity, then you\u2019d know that there is a sense of excitement around <b>The Xcerts<\/b> right now. As they put the final touches to album #4, <i>\u2018Hold On To Your Heart\u2019<\/i>, the Brighton-based trio have headed out on a UK tour to tease us some more before its early 2018 release.<\/p>\n<p>Joining them for the ride is fellow Brightonians <b>Big Spring<\/b>. With just a handful of singles to their name, various supporting slots and festival spots continue to enhance their status. Tonight they\u2019re stylistically hard to pin down; tight groove-filled riffs with a subtle grunge-tinged rawness. Recent single, <i>\u2018Cold Foot\u2019<\/i>, thrives on a thick bass line and twisting melodies led by Ollie Loring. Throughout he eases into the role of frontman with a confident vocal display, reaching high notes with ease, especially on forthcoming single &#8211; <i>\u2018Coming Down\u2019<\/i>. Although it\u2019s clear <b>Big Spring<\/b> are a good band, they lack a lasting identity yet songs such as <i>\u20185th of July\u2019<\/i> show their potential. (2.5\/5)<\/p>\n<p><!-- more --><\/p>\n<p>By the time <b>The Xcerts<\/b> enter, the room is fuller as frontman Murray MacLeod says <i>\u201clet\u2019s have fun\u201d<\/i> before launching into recent single <i>\u2018Daydream\u2019<\/i>. With plenty of urgency, it\u2019s a solid introduction to the next chapter of <b>The Xcerts<\/b>. A roll of older cuts; <i>\u2018I Don\u2019t Care\u2019<\/i>, <i>\u2018Live Like This\u2019<\/i> and <i>\u2018Kids on Drugs\u2019<\/i> bring the crowd alive as Macleod conducts them to sing along with a beaming smile. While \u2018Distant Memory\u2019 allows him to demonstrate his powerful, soaring voice while drummer Tom Heron and bassist Jordan Smith provide an effective rhythm section throughout.<\/p>\n<p>In terms of airing new material, both <i>\u2018First Kiss Feeling\u2019<\/i> and <i>\u2018Show Me Beautiful\u2019<\/i> fit the 80s teen movie soundtrack vibe that the trio has spoken about in recent months. The former is a bouncy, energetic number, with <i>\u2018Show Me Beautiful\u2019<\/i> taking a slower, harmonious route with Jordan supplying soothing keys.<\/p>\n<p>While they may be looking towards the future, <b>The Xcerts<\/b> don\u2019t abandon their past with old favourites <i>\u2018Crisis In the Slow Lane\u2019<\/i>, <i>\u2018Slackerpop\u2019<\/i> and <i>\u2018Shaking In The Water\u2019<\/i> padding out the set in a favourable fashion. In between all that, a stripped-back version of <i>\u2018Pop Song\u2019<\/i> sees Macleod alone, putting the spotlight on his compelling songwriting. Likewise <i>\u2018There Is Only You\u2019<\/i> is as poignant and powerful as ever as it rounds the main set. In regards to Macleod, if it\u2019s flanked by Smith and Heron or by himself, he has the ability to capture the crowd\u2019s attention through his charisma and songwriting prowess.<\/p>\n<p>As for the encore, <i>\u2018Aberdeen 1987\u2019<\/i> sees the crowd singing in unison during its chorus, before <i>\u2018Feel Like Falling In Love\u2019<\/i> closes the night on a heartfelt high. Its radiance continues to shine bright, no matter how many times we\u2019ve heard it since its release this summer.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s been said dozens of times but you have to question why the hell <b>The Xcerts<\/b> aren\u2019t headlining to bigger, packed-out rooms? They have a catalogue of stellar songs that are on par, or even better, then some of \u201cBrit Rock\u201d\u2019s leading bands. All being well, <i>\u2018Hold On To Your Heart\u2019<\/i> has all the makings of being that \u201cbreakthrough\u201d record. (4.5\/5)<\/p>\n<p>3.5\/5<\/p>\n<p>Words by S\u00eaan Reid (<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SeanReid86\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">@SeanReid86<\/a>)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019ve been following their recent activity, then you\u2019d know that there is a sense of excitement around The Xcerts right now. As they put the final touches to album #4, \u2018Hold On To Your Heart\u2019, the Brighton-based trio have headed out on a UK tour to tease us some more before its early 2018 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16680,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[808,14,143,296],"class_list":["post-1124","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-live-reviews","tag-big-spring","tag-nottingham","tag-the-bodega","tag-the-xcerts"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Live Review: The Xcerts with Big Spring - The Bodega, Nottingham - 30\/09\/2017 - Already Heard Staging<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"If you\u2019ve been following their recent activity, then you\u2019d know that there is a sense of excitement around The Xcerts right now. 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