The Sheffield Scenester

This was the first time I’d been to Henry’s Bar in well over a decade; it had in fact shut down for various reasons, but through the efforts of Mark and Adam Simmonite it has been re-opened recently as a real ale bar, cafe and restaurant. With solid wooden tables that could easily seat a football team, plenty of obscure real ales for sale – which I have to admit I did indulge.....for research purposes only (the best one I personally found was a tasty number called ‘Bad To The Bone’)! So armed with a good ale I made my way to the stage...when I say stage I actually mean that they had cordoned off a raised section of the floor in front of the windows to serve as a stage! This was the first night organised by Fat Elephant and so with a top line up and an exciting new venue, everything was in place for a good night in town.

Solo artist Breaking Tables (whom we’d seen before at The Frog and Parrot) kicked off the night’s entertainment. This time however (with the good acoustics at Henry’s) the sound seemed to come across with a marked improvement...the enhanced vocals which was emphasized with a driving force behind each song seemed to help him pick up the tune and fly with it! With obvious emotional strain the singer poured his heart out throughout the set, though to be fair he did take a breather as he showed his guitar skills off during a couple of solos dotted about the proceedings! Also in his favour was the fact that he didn’t do what some solo artists do and play the same tune to slightly different lyrics. Instead he demonstrated a reasonable cross-section of musical influences and styles to a crowd who were familiar with his output...this also helped any newcomers to his music, making sure they didn’t find his set boring in any way!

The second act of the night was Roman Android, I remember seeing them at The Harley and although they delivered a promising set, it was fairly apparent how nervous they were...that may have been due to the close proximity of the audience at the time, playing with someone directly in your face can’t be easy for a new band! This time however, from the go, they have obviously taken great strides in the right direction as they had completely dropped their earlier on-stage jitters and just got on with the job in hand. Opening with the track ‘Back in Motion’, their sound seems to of deepened to a more grinding anthem styled outpouring. This also applied to the following track ‘The Fever’, though singer Chris Hill did utilize a futuristic keyboard soundtrack to this song, giving it an interesting and original slant. Easily their best song of the night was ‘Order 66’, as the tune was easy to pick up, thanks to the guitars and rhythm being structured around a near haunting keyboard onslaught from Chris. As the set continued each song progressively established Roman Androids right to play with the more established bands, the crowd responded with equal enthusiasm as their cheers became louder. Their set is quite a revelation when comparing it to the almost stage struck beginnings at the Harley, and to be honest I could of left the venue there and then with out disappointment. So it was with a certain degree of remorse on my part that they wound their set up, but since they were to be followed by The Ratells I wasn’t too gutted.

Here was another band that I’ve seen grow and mature over the last couple of years, with lead singer Ash now able to take to the centre stage as if he was born to the job. Their song writing ability has advanced in leaps and bounds with the last few free downloads being some of the best material around, both musically and lyrically. One thing I’d always been curious about though was could they transfer their stage show to an over eighteen venue, because until now I’d only seen them play to an audience of screaming girls! With drummer Ben, opening with his trademark invigorating solo, always guaranteed to catch the crowd’s attention, they ploughed straight into ‘Furnace Hill’. While mixing both classics and recent releases like ‘Murder from a Broken Heart’ and ‘Fearful Lullaby’, they didn’t exactly turn the female members of the crowd into screaming fanatics....although it did generate a buzz in the crowd, which ensured the gathering began paying a lot more attention. Finishing with their best track ‘Something More’ only re-enforced this to the onlookers as well as having the effect of converting any doubters. Hopefully this experience will encourage them to play to an eighteen plus more often!

Here at last was the headline act – Elephant Keys – who it has to be said have never put a foot wrong...in fact it is quite remarkable to see their sets are getting tighter of late. Yet again Phil and Tommy had downgraded their facial hair by opting for a clean shaven look....or as near as! Opening their set with the classic ‘The Truth’ instantly took the crowd by the scruff of the neck, a typical ploy of Elephant Keys, just play loud, fast and as enthusiastically possible until everybody is up and dancing along with them! You can’t deny Phil’s infectious energy level and the audience just gets swept along in the general euphoria of the event, as he continually wrestles his guitar, squeezing every possible note out of the poor instrument. Running the full gauntlet of his set, with a list of songs as well known to the crowd as any Beatles collection, Phil and Tommy jostle for attention on stage while the crowd just laps the whole spectacle up. Squarely planted at the back of the stage is drummer Mike who’s left the task of beating the hell out of his skins to every tune going, with songs like ‘Nicole’, ‘Candlewax’, the more restrained ‘Sebastian’ as well as the breakneck speed driven ‘What Ever Gets You To Sleep At Night’. Bringing the set to a close, is given over to ‘Fashion Queen’ and ‘What They Say’, now on this final track the crowd were treated to a bit of a stage show as Phil threw out their mascot elephant head into the crowd. Some girl in a short yellow dress popped it on her head, clambered up onto the stage area and danced along with complete disregard for any dignity or coordination. This automatically had the rather amusing effect of a whole host of mobile cameras coming into action, but she seemed to be enjoying herself!

An outstanding night in rather opulent surroundings, rather like the Soyo Bar, seeing live music in a degree of luxury is maybe a bit self indulgent...but it does make for an excellent night out. With good acoustics and relaxing surroundings I only hope that the owners take this on board and put more events of this calibre on, because the crowd obviously enjoyed the night!

Words and Photos by Gail & Geoff Buckthorpe