{"id":2579,"date":"2018-12-05T05:00:35","date_gmt":"2018-12-05T05:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/?p=2579"},"modified":"2018-11-27T20:15:53","modified_gmt":"2018-11-27T20:15:53","slug":"paul-draper-york-the-crescent-21st-november-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/?p=2579","title":{"rendered":"Paul Draper \u2013 York, The Crescent \u2013 21st November 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Mansun\u2019s debut album \u2018Attack Of The Grey Lantern\u2019 came out 21 years ago, yet it only seems like yesterday that a mate shoved a hand-scrawled C90 in my hands and said: \u201cYou\u2019ll love this new album, it sounds like Duran Duran meets The Manics\u201d.<\/p>\n

It did sound like that and I did love it! Haunting and melodic, deep and cinematic, how the hell did an Indie band from Chester have the balls to release an ambitious concept album as their debut slap bang in the throws of Britpop? They were the outcasts of the Indie music scene, the music press hated them, they didn\u2019t fit in, but I loved them. The album debuted at number 1, they lasted 3 albums and split never to be seen again. Yet 21 years later, \u2018Attack Of The Grey Lantern\u2019 remains one of my favourite albums of all time.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Now, seemingly a lifetime later, singer\/songwriter Paul Draper returns. Following a rather cool debut solo album named \u2018Spooky Action\u2019 and a successful full band tour last year playing \u2018AOTGL\u2019 in its entirety; he goes out on the road with guitarist Ben Sink playing acoustic shows. Mansun songs acoustic! Well, with a show announced at The Crescent in York, just a stone\u2019s throw from my house, it would be rude not to turn out and see if the guy who wrote one of my all-time favourite albums has still got it after all these years, wouldn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Following a set of sweet and chilled folk songs, mixing fiddle, ukulele and keyboards courtesy of Flo Perlin, Paul Draper and Ben Sink take to the stage with their guitars, a few bottles of beer and a few hundred fans for company. Draper, dressed in a black t-shirt and denim jacket, a full beard and his hair now grown out, is a stark contrast to the skin up pin-up of 1997, but hey aren\u2019t we all? That was 20 years ago, but the voice, that voice is still intact.<\/p>\n

What follows is a choice set of solo songs, Mansun hits and obscure b sides. Enough to whet the appetite of even the most casual of Paul Draper fans. Of course, there is always one, one pissed-up heckler who tries, albeit unintentionally, to ruin the whole night. But Paul just takes the piss out of him in good spirits. He\u2019s pissed, yet obviously, an Uber fan who sings along (badly and out of tune to every single word to every song, fair play). Paul jokes and asks him to shut up many times, as he\u2019s singing so loud, he can\u2019t hear himself to key in.\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Tonight\u2019s opener \u2018Friends Make The Worst Enemies\u2019 is a highlight from last year\u2019s \u2018Spooky Action\u2019 and it sounds great. With years in the wilderness, Paul\u2019s voice has been kept in great condition and he hits all the notes no problem.<\/p>\n

I was interested to witness how Mansun songs transferred in this intimate acoustic environment, stripped of the layers of production, vocal harmonies and guitars, the songs stand up surprisingly well. \u2018Disgusting\u2019 sounds as beautiful as the album version, the following \u2018Negative\u2019 from \u2018Six\u2019 is an unexpected highlight, it sounds amazing acoustic, Paul\u2019s voice hitting those high notes to perfection, it loses none of its upbeat intensity and grandiose charm.<\/p>\n

\u2018The Chad Who Loved Me (probably the greatest opening song of any album) is as good as I hoped it would be and \u2018Legacy\u2019 is epic as I remember it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Paul is on fine form, telling stories and jokes between songs, as he swigs on beer and sucks throat pastels. Either taking the piss out of the heckler (\u201che\u2019s probably wearing a Shed 7 t-shirt\u201d), Ben (\u201che\u2019s doing Movember, you know\u201d) or himself. He even tells, us prior to performing a rarity from the unreleased fourth album sessions (\u2018Keep Telling Myself\u2019), how Mansun came to an end after an unnamed member of the band head butted him.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The new material fits perfectly with the older Mansun classics, the likes of \u2018Things People Want\u2019 getting just as much audience participation as the classic \u2018Wide Open Space\u2019 does.<\/p>\n

In this intimate setting, stripped of all the production, these songs are laid bare and Paul\u2019s lyrical genius is pushed to the fore. The combination of Paul singing and strumming chords as Ben watches his leader intently for the changes, recreating Dominic Chad\u2019s intricate lead work is sublime to witness in the flesh. After a short break, the duo return for an encore of the seminal epic \u2018AOFTG\u2019 closer \u2018Dark Mavis\u2019, which remains a set highlight long after the lights have dimmed and the crowds have wondered from the bar.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Paul Draper remains an underrated songwriter who has never got the credit he deserves, but then I\u2019ve always loved an underdog. While it looks like a Mansun reunion will never happen, Paul Draper is here performing songs that stand the test of time and prove Mansun were always more than just another Britpop indie band. A beautiful experience.<\/p>\n

Author: Ben Hughes<\/p>\n

Buy Paul Draper Here<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mansun\u2019s debut album \u2018Attack Of The Grey Lantern\u2019 came out 21 years ago, yet it only seems like yesterday that a mate shoved a hand-scrawled C90 in my hands and said: \u201cYou\u2019ll love this new album, it sounds like Duran Duran meets The Manics\u201d. It did sound like that and I did love it! Haunting […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2581,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"image","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[44],"tags":[726,126,125],"class_list":["post-2579","post","type-post","status-publish","format-image","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-live-review","tag-ben-hughes","tag-mansun","tag-paul-draper","post_format-post-format-image"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2579","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2579"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2579\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2583,"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2579\/revisions\/2583"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2581"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2579"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2579"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2579"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}