Low - Scala

Now, I love Low - I've loved them for 10 years now but the last couple of albums and the last couple of shows have both been a disappointment to me. Ocasionally a gem will sneak through but for the most part they haven't really "got me" since Secret NameI'd grabbed the new album from Soulseek a couple of weeks back to get me prepeared and I must admit I didn't enjoy the preparation. Most songs were decidedly average and one was dreadful - I never thought the day would come when Low would release a "dreadful" song but in "Just Stand Back" they have achieved that. This had me turning up at The Scala with a fair bit of trepidation

The show featured a fair bit off the new album - including the aforementioned "Just Stand Back" and, to be frank, they didn't work live either - although the crowd reception implied that my opinion was not a popular one. Having said that they are still a great live band and with such a back catalogue to work from they still managed to turn in a phenomenal show. They played "Shame" as a tribute to Peel - and I wanted to just go home then - surely it couldn;t get better than that. They played "Two Step" which was just beautiful and they finished with a stunning "Lullaby".

I hate to sound like some old fart yearning for the golden days but I can't see how anyone could not have noticed the immense gulf in quality between those old Low songs and the new ones. Low seem to have changed direction - and this isn't some sort of evolution that I ought to have expected as a band matures - this is Low turning from something special into "just another rock band".

Still a great show but it made me feel sad that they and I see the future differently.