CREEPER (Live)

It`s only a couple of years since they impressed opening for Alice Cooper on a 3 band bill and Creeper have come on leaps and bounds since then.  Much of that is down to their astonishing third album, Sanguivore which has seen them pushing their boundaries far wider than their initial Punky Modern Metal approach of those earlier releases bringing a darker, more melancholic Gothic approach to their sound to stunning effect.

It`s no surprise therefore to see the Boiler Shop pretty much packed for what may well be their last headlining tour in the clubs before they head to the arenas and within seconds of opener ‘Cry To Heaven’ the place literally erupts with hundreds of rabid fans jumping up and down singing every word before the ferocious Punk energy of ‘Poison Pens’ kicks like a mule.

With deep red and dark blue lighting and plenty of shadows and shade, songs such as ‘Lovers Led Astray’ and ‘Teenage Sacrifice’ shimmered in Gothic splendour while ‘The Ballad Of Spook and Mercy’ maybe possibly be the darkest, most sinister love song since Nick Cave`s duet with Kylie on ‘Where The Wild Roses Grow.’ As charismatic lead singer Will Gould (although his pseudonym Will Von Ghould, seems a more appropriate fit) conducts the crowd from the front with his vampiric leather clad charm.

Hannah Greenwood, unleashed from behind her keyboards took centre stage for the lead vocals on ‘Ghosts Over Calvary’ where the chorus simply soared and on a stripped down ‘Crickets’ where she was alone on stage with a single acoustic guitar accompaniment.

An insanely lively, ‘Annabelle’ had the floor literally shaking as the entire venue jumped up and down as one heaving mass while ‘I Want To Live’ was illuminated by hundreds of waving mobile phones as ‘Further Than Forever’ brought an epic slice of Meatloaf bombast to the closing stages of the show before the more introspective ‘Misery’ closed it off in downbeat style.

Review and Photos By Mick Burgess