’Phonics back to guitar-led best

2:24pm Wednesday 14th November 2007

Stereophonics, NEC Arena, Sunday November 11 Ten years on from the release of their debut Word Gets Around' album, the Welsh superstars return with a back-to-basics rock dominated set.

Kelly Jones and the boys are back following last month's release of their sixth studio record Push the Pin'.

For fans who were put off the band by a Blues influenced fourth album they can rest at ease as the group resort to what made them famous - rock-dominated performances.

With six albums to draw from it wasn't much of a surprise that last Sunday's sold-out gig at the NEC proved to be a good one.

Jones even admitted the night's set list was made up of all the songs the band love to play live. Hits including Local Boy in the Photograph, Vegas Two Times and The Bartender and the Thief nearly blew the roof off the NEC.

But there were mellow moments, particularly when Jones took to the stage himself for a three-song medley of some of their other tracks that didn't make the cut.

Near non-stop music was only stopped by Jones' banter with the crowd which included a quip at his altercation' with a nightclub bouncer in September, his youthful visits to NEC gigs to see the likes of Aerosmith and ACDC and his early memories of playing at Brum pubs.

These were laced with tracks from the new album such as their last single It Means Nothing' and what might be a future release Daisy Lane'.

This was a night of no frills, no gimmicks pure guitar-led music closed during the two-song encore by the blistering Dakota.

Support came in the form of Coventry's own The Enemy who offered a great rock appetiser before the meaty main course.

On this evidence the Stereophonics are a band that can definitely be described as being back to their best.

EDITOR'S CHOICE