Backed by his band The Hoodrats Chris T-T topped an entertaining bill (that also included enjoyable sets by pop-punk acts Caledonians and DiveDive) at Brighton’s newest gig venue The Green Door Store.
Solo Chris T-T is very much the singer-songwriter folk troubadour but this first gig in several years with The Hoodrats marked a return to the noisier side to his persona.
Opening with ‘Tomorrow Morning’ followed by ‘4AM’ (see footage here) it was a confident, loud and good humoured return played to a partisan hometown audience.
Chris T-T and The Hoodrats
The set bowled along at pace and the band played superbly through a range of songs from his back catalogue. His latest single ‘Words Fail Me’ showed him to be in good voice and showcased his poppier tendancies. Lyrically the songs demonstrated a variety of themes from giraffes, to the M1 motorway to love and relationships.
‘M1’ in particular stood out in the set, in the main due to being performed solo and without instrumentation. The song is a slightly earnest tribute to the forests that were destroyed to build the titular motorway, sung in a traditional folk style. It takes a strong performer to attempt this in the middle of a loud rock set, but it works. Putting cynicism to one side is a positive thing to do and we need protest songs today as much as ever.
On a side note it was gratifying to discover a new live music venue that really works. The Green Door Store is rough around the edges, but welcoming and well set out and offering Brighton an excellent small gig venue. The sound was good and the view of the stage was clear. Set into the base of Brighton station this is a venue I’ll definitely be frequenting in the future.
All in all a good evening and an excellent performance by Chris T-T and band.
9/10
By Dorian Rogers
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