Good Shoes, London ULU

Good Shoes

December 12, 2009

A frosty Saturday night sees Morden-based indie outfit Good Shoes roll over to the London ULU for a night of catchy rock-pop tunes, but the arctic weather doesn’t stop them from packing out this dainty music venue in the capital.

After losing a band member and taking time out to write their second album, Good Shoes have been away from the music scene for what seems like forever. But even with a sizable gap since their last tour or album, Rhys Jones and Co still manage to pull in a decent crowd.

Opening their set with a fondly stumbled into rendition of  ‘Photos On My Wall’, they then lead into new song ‘The Way My Heart Beats’. It’s obvious the band are feeling a bit rusty after so long without a tour, but all the usual hits are well received and fondly remembered.

Whilst mingling through the crowd an unreliable, and probably quite drunken, source informs me we should expect a much darker sound on the forthcoming Good Shoes album. Seconds later as Rhys Jones and his fellow band members launch into new song ‘Under Control’, it appears that this fellow audience member has his facts correct. Instead of the joyful pop tunes Think Before You Speak brought us, we were treated an array of sinister and somewhat heavier tunes.

The set list includes all the usual first album hits, with the ever popular ‘All In My Head’, ‘Morden’ and ‘We Are Not The Same’ prompting the biggest reactions and sing-along from the crowd. This eager London audience is also treated to a sprinkling of new songs taken from the impending album due for release in January 2010. New tracks ‘City By the Sea’ and ‘Then She Walks Away’, although unknown to most prior to the gig, demonstrate exactly how different the next album No Hope No Future will be, but still manage to keep the fans content.

The only sour point of the night comes with the exclusion of  ‘Never Meant to Hurt You’ from the set list, but I guess you can’t have everything in an otherwise enjoyable night.