‘To stand in a field and hear the old guitar-heavy favourites again is one of the joys of the reunion band’
Elegant evenings often begin with a picnic supper in the grounds of a grand stately home. If you can follow the quiche and Prosecco with a concert on the banks of a water-lilied lake then so much the better. Kenwood House in Hampstead has been running outdoor concerts since the Fifties and is the ideal location for such diversions.
Kenwood’s early owner, the first Earl of Mansfield would have approved heartily, although he might have been slightly bemused by the music that was being played when I visited, indie rock not being as popular in the 18th century as it is now. Kenwood House is an unusually grand setting for guitar-bass-drums combos, but then it is a venue where the signs include Carluccio’s Picnic Area and fellow audience members wait patiently by sketching the stage or reading Booker Prize long-list novels.
It’s a long time since I played a Suede song. It was probably on a Walkman, which was much bigger than an iPod and only held one album at a time. Kids, ask your parents about life in the olden days, when – bizarrely – music was more expensive than it is today. Though Suede reformed in 2010, Melody Maker claimed they were the best new band in Britain way back in 1992. Their guitar driven performances were a good spectacle back then and they remain so thanks to the vocal and physical athleticism of lead singer Brett Anderson.
Two bands were playing before Suede hit the stage.’We’re only here for twenty minutes,’ announced Thomas Sanders of Teleman, ‘so we’re just going to get on with it.’ An admirable approach from the London band, whose music has been produced by Bernard Butler – guitarist in the original Suede line up. They were the first of the three bands playing and launched into a short set of drum-grooved tracks that have been well compared to Django Django.
Second up were British Sea Power. Judging by their set decorations their favourite place for a gig would be a garden centre. Arty films played on the big screens each side of the stage, followed by clips from nature documentaries. Nowadays dancing bears are generally frowned upon, but in their new cruelty-free form they came on stage, boogied and waved flags. BSP finished with a spot of guitar juggling and headstands that would have scored minus points at any gymnastic meeting but entertained the crowd.
There was a pause whilst the stage was reset for Suede. People took the opportunity to get resupplied with food and drink from the stalls in front of the Robert Adam neoclassical facade.
18th century classicism versus 21st century commercialism
When Suede came onstage it was clear the enthusiasm was still there, Anderson in particular giving the impression of having a great time. Indeed at the end he explained that Kenwood House was a favourite location of his:
‘It’s such a beautiful place, I’ve spent a lot of happy times in this park.’
The effort of the hour and a half set on the balmy evening was perspiration-soaking his tight fitting white shirt, but it didn’t affect his cool. Swinging the mic around his head like a helicopter rotor, he’s a showman – which is perfect when you’re putting on a show. There is something intoxicating about Anderson’s voice, the lyrics are secondary to the aural texture he creates. That helps explain how a song like Animal Nitrate (subject: effects of sexual abuse) can be a bouncing crowd pleaser.
One song segued straight into another, there was little chat with the audience as the band ran through their well-known songs, the crowd pogoing happily to the Nineties anthems. To stand in a field and hear the old guitar-heavy favourites again is one of the joys of the reunion band, although Suede are shaking things up by heading back to the studio and releasing new work like 2013’s It Starts and Ends with You. That’s probably sensible when your back catalogue includes songs with lyrics like ‘We’re so young…’ although that proves that Suede didn’t expect to be still performing in their forties.
‘You’ve been wonderful, cheers,’ called Anderson as they reached the end of the set. A toddler with a light stick rolled down the hill past me and I joined the crowd of people looking to get on the 210 bus to Golders Green.
The Live by the Lake season continues until 1st September. Events include Opera Alfresco, Gershwin and a live music screening of Singing in the Rain. More details and tickets here
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