miles kane komedia, bath // 12.05.13 // words by stephen chapman photography by alterna2
It was amongst a sea of sideburns, tight trousers and top-buttoned polos that Wirral wonder Miles Kane took to the stage at Bath’s Komedia. It was the latest instalment of his tour to promote the release of his second solo album, Don’t Forget Who You Are. Former frontman of Indie-rock oufit ‘The Rascals’, and co-founder (with Alex Turner) of side project ‘The Last of The Shadow Puppets’, Kane has amassed a loyal following of ‘mods’ both young and old, who formed the majority of the Bath crowd. As the stage was cleared and set up for Kane, a buzz of anticipation could be felt around the ever-growing Komedia crowd. The lights went off and onto the stage swaggered Kane, the eyes of the entire crowd following him as he jumped between the impressive lights and smoke which drenched the stage. His presence and confidence, which was missing from the warm-up act was more than made up for, as Kane just stood and lapped up the adulation from the mod-heavy crowd. The set was fittingly opened with ‘You’re Gonna Get It’, an instalment from Kane’s latest album which a surprising number recognised and sang along to; a fact which explains just how well Kane’s solo career has captured imagination’s everywhere. 3 songs into his set, Miles stopped the music in the middle of a song to break up a fight which had broken out between some of the merrier members of the crowd, a move which immediately got all of Komedia on his side. He took to the mic and proudly exclaimed, “I don’t want any more fucking fighting. I just want to play some fucking music!” Kane then changed songs, claiming “We needed something more upbeat after all that”. As a performer he exuded ability, and came with the kind of confidence that justified that hair, those trousers and that rock-star pout. Halfway through his gig, cheeks already glistening with sweat, Kane unleashed ‘Inhaler’, a fan-favourite from his first album The Colour of the Trap. Any doubts about the set vanished, and Kane himself seemed to move up a gear, shredding up and down his guitar as the mods bounced around in front of him. An extended edition of ‘Come Closer’, another favourite from the first album, followed by the second album’s title track ‘Don’t Forget Who You Are’ ended the show. Lights, fights and questionable tights – the set had everything, and proved to the critics that Kane is equally at home in an intimate venue such as this, as commanding a jumping festival tent.
• 0101 •