Shooting Our Mouths Off

In October, James announced that they would play an intimate one-off charity show at the Albert Hall on Monday 18th December 2017, raising money for the ‘We Love Manchester’ Emergency Fund – an initiative set up to support those affected by the Manchester terror attack earlier that year. From the moment the show was announced, special guests were teased, and the band promised a memorable evening, performing not one, but two sets.

Opening the night were “special guests” and familiar faces, The Slow Readers Club. Long championed by James, the band have supported them on several occasions and had headlined the Albert Hall themselves just a month earlier. Performing acoustically as a three-piece, they delivered a six-song set that included a beautifully understated version of new single ‘Lunatic’, highlighting Kurtis Starkie’s talents not only as a guitarist, but also as a backing vocalist. Aaron Starkie’s powerful vocals captivated the audience throughout, particularly during the emotive ‘I Saw A Ghost’, while Jim Ryan’s infectious bassline in ‘Forever In Your Debt’ proved impossible to ignore. Every song showcased just how far the band had come in recent years, cementing the feeling that they had an exciting 2018 ahead of them.

James began their first set with a sprawling nine-minute improvisation between frontman Tim Booth, bassist Jim Glennie, keyboardist Mark Hunter and multi instrumentalist Saul Davies, accompanied by what Tim jokingly described as an “80s-style drum machine” on his iPhone. As ideas for future songs bounced around the stage, the soaring sound of a trumpet cut through the venue and Andy Diagram joined his bandmates to huge applause, sporting an appropriately bee-patterned black shirt. Fans watched in fascination as they were given a rare glimpse into the band’s creative process.

For the remainder of the set, James were joined by a string quartet arranged by Joe Duddell, who had previously collaborated with the band during their Orchestra of the Swan tour in 2011. A dramatic swell of strings introduced ‘Seven’, and the anticipation inside the venue was palpable before Tim delivered the opening line, prompting 2,000 voices to erupt in unison. The mood darkened for ‘Hello’ from Millionaires, with the lighting perfectly matching the song’s intensity. After explaining how ‘Sit Down’ had helped many people in the aftermath of May’s tragedy, Tim performed a stripped-back version alongside the string quartet and Mark. The lyrics felt more poignant than ever, elevated by haunting strings and Mark’s delicate keyboard work.

Never afraid to embrace the unknown, James also debuted two new songs: ‘Mask’ and ‘Many Faces’. Becky Unthank of The Unthanks joined the band for ‘Mask’, while Ainslie Henderson appeared on both tracks. ‘Mask’ featured the kind of slow-burning build-up synonymous with classic James songs before exploding into a powerful wall of sound that allowed Tim to completely lose himself in the music. Before introducing ‘Many Faces’, Tim taught the audience its chorus – “there’s only one human race, many faces, everybody belongs here” – confident they would join in by the song’s conclusion. Remarkably, by the end of the track, the entire room was singing along to words they had only heard moments earlier.

Sandwiched between James’ two sets was Glasvegas frontman James Allan. Performing one of his first solo shows seated behind a keyboard – unfortunately obscured from much of the standing audience – he appeared visibly nervous. However, his vocals were exceptional as he moved through the set with minimal interaction, aside from proudly showing off his James watch from the 90s. Glasvegas favourites ‘Geraldine’ and ‘Charge’ both featured, with James inviting his mother on stage during the latter to perform the spoken-word monologue from the recorded version. Unfortunately, persistent technical difficulties brought the set to an abrupt conclusion.

James returned for their second set with ‘To My Surprise’, immediately reigniting the electric atmosphere inside the Albert Hall. During ‘Born of Frustration’, Tim made his way to the edge of the stage, crouching down to connect directly with fans on the front row as he sang lyrics that had clearly soundtracked many lives. Andy also made his presence felt, appearing on the balcony during the song’s breakdown as his trumpet echoed around the venue. Renowned for his crowd surfing, Tim launched himself into the audience during the dance-fuelled ‘Curse Curse’, trusting fans to carry him safely above the crowd. Later, during the synth-driven ‘Come Home’, he ventured upstairs into the balcony, dancing through the crowd without missing a note.

Earlier in the evening, Tim had joked that there were two kinds of fans in attendance: those who loved the orchestral side of James and those who preferred the band at their most raucous. Impressively, the setlist catered perfectly to both. Alongside beloved hits such as ‘Tomorrow’ and the moving ‘Moving On’, the band also dusted off lesser-played tracks including ‘Play Dead’ and ‘Lost A Friend’. Driven by David Baynton-Power’s thunderous drumming, ‘Play Dead’ stood out as one of the night’s defining moments.

Part of what makes James such an exciting live band is their willingness to constantly reinvent their material, and Monday night provided several perfect examples. Euphoric reworkings of ‘Attention’ and a stripped-back ‘How Was It For You’ breathed new life into familiar songs, while encore opener ‘She’s A Star’ was transformed into a gorgeous acoustic performance featuring Adrian Oxaal on cello and Andy’s swooping trumpet lines.

The night reached its emotional peak with the unifying ‘Nothing But Love’, accompanied by a sea of synchronised waving arms, before James closed the evening with the timeless ‘Sometimes’. Long after the final notes had faded, the crowd continued to sing, reluctant to let the moment end. It was heartwarming to witness so much love in one room, and everyone in attendance surely left knowing they had experienced something truly special.