The Cricketers – Dover

Alter Ego, The Cricketers, Dover 24^th May 2013

GIGgle Pics Review by Mark Cridland

Right, where to begin? This is the first time that I’ve written a review for anything other than my radio show on DCR so bear with me.

We arrived at The Cricketers about 8pm expecting the band to be already set up as they have a reputation of being well prepared, only to see Dan Burvill, lead singer and Guitarist unloading the car, with nothing set up! Ah, well I thought, just a minor fault, at least they’ll have the set list ready for me to have a look at, but no. Niall, the bassist who is usually the organised one was busy writing the set list on a beer mat! How rock and roll is that? Anyway, they managed to set up and do a short sound check before having time for a beer and a smoke before the scheduled 9pm start time, I’d never expect any different from these guys, having seen them before whilst on a night off.

They kicked off the night with the classic Blacken The Name with the usual Alter Ego edge to it. Dan has admitted that he can’t reach the higher tones and so just does his metal “rahhh!” This is a sound coming from a guy who, as someone pointed out to me, looks like a modern day rock Smurf!

They went on to play the set which doesn’t seem to have changed in a while, although I was told that they now have a month off and are working on new material. They like to start their gigs with softer music, playing the likes of Danny California, London Calling, Teenage Kicks and my favourite from the first half, Through Glass. They really did this song justice and you could feel the emotion, as I write this I’m listening to the recording that I made of the whole night and I love this song!

The second half however started a bit heavier, including more music from The Red Hot Chilli Peppers; the one song that they have recorded, Calling In The Name of; and Dan’s favourite, a medley of Funky Bell Tolls and Higher Ground. It is so very obvious why this is one of Dan’s favourites as his voice really suits the style. Another song that got my attention was their version of Reef’s Place Your Hands. Now, I like this song and really hoped that they wouldn’t ruin it for me. I was to be pleasantly surprised. These types of songs are what Dan really can sing; he did struggle vocally in quite a number of songs which often required softer singing because his voice really doesn’t suit it.

I found no issues with Solomon’s drumming, apart from him getting incredibly sweaty and Niall is an amazing Bass player, very enthusiastic and at point it really did look like he was making love to his guitar, reminding me of the part in the movie ‘Full Metal Jacket’ where the marine recruits chant : “This is my rifle. There are many others like it, but this one is mine. My rifle is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me, my rifle is useless. Without my rifle, I am useless” this analogy seems to suit the relationship that Niall has with his bass!

Towards the end of the night, they came to, in Dan’s own words, “the cheesy section of the gig”. Oh, no I thought, this is gonna go so bad. But, and it’s a big but, it was actually enjoyable. They played Baggy Trousers, Hey Ya, Breakfast at Tiffany’s and Sweet Home Alabama. All of which received the Alter Ego treatment with Dan doing his famous “rahh!” at the points that he couldn’t reach the notes required.

All in all a very entertaining Gig and I am looking forward to see what changes they make during their short break. It was just a shame that the original crowds dispersed as the night went on, I don’t think that the pub management had done much in the way of promoting the gig so people were just popping in by chance or passing by and heard the band playing so were intrigued by their sound. I couldn’t spot anyone who looked like they were there simply to watch the band perform.

Just to summarise, a good, entertaining night out but the band need to concentrate more on heavy rock to make the most of Dan’s voice. I shall certainly be going to see them at a future gig to see if they have evolved into the heavy rock band which is eager to get out from inside them.

Mark Cridland

GIGgle Pics Live Reviewer

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