The Smyths are a well-known British tribute band, who recreate what it was like to see and hear The Smiths live. The tribute act formed in 2003, and have been very successful ever since. On the 11th of February, 1985 a fantastic album was released. That album was ‘Meat is Murder’ by The Smiths. Therefore their performance was dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the album.
The doors opened at 19:30, however I entered the venue at 20:00 as The Smyths weren’t performing till 20:15. The Sugarmill was rammed with a very mixed crowd, of all different ages and fashions. I stood at the back for the first half, as there was no chance I was getting to the front - due to the audience hardly being able to move. Graham Sampson as “Morrissey” entered onto the stage with his hair slicked back like Morrissey’s traditional quiff, his over-sized glasses and polka dot shirt on.
The first song that the band performed that night was ‘The Boy with the Thorn in His Side’. I was actually very surprised as to how outstanding their performance was. The line in which the crowd got involved with was;
“If they don’t believe me now, will they ever believe me?”
This song was brilliantly executed and it received a well-deserved astounding applause from the audience.
‘Shoplifters of the World’ was the second song of the first half, and it is one of my favourite Smiths songs, amongst many others that they also performed. The guitar riff was absolutely spot on, and this song received an even bigger applause. On the topic of my favourite Smiths songs; they also performed ‘William it was really Nothing’, ‘Girlfriend in a Coma’, ‘Panic’, ‘Ask’, and ‘I Want the One I Can’t Have’ .
When ‘William it was really Nothing’ was performed, that was when I felt that the performance really began to kick in for me. Sampson was wafting his arms in the air all loose, very much like Morrissey. He even got the flowers out within this performance! Once ‘Panic’ began to play, that really got the crowd going and the majority of arms went up on the line;
“Hang the DJ, Hang the DJ, Hang the DJ.”
One of my favourite performances of the night would have to be ‘Girlfriend in a Coma’ as Sampson started doing all of these quirky hand and arm gestures, expressing his passion. This performance also received an outstanding applause, like the majority of their performances. The song that particularly stood out for me would have to be ‘I Know It’s Over’ as this is when the other band members began to interact with the crowd and each other. The bassist began to sing and the guitarist was swaying along to the song, there was just something about this performance that stood out for me. ‘Meat is Murder’ was an extremely passionate performance. Sampson was gripped onto the microphone, pouring his heart out to the audience as he sharply and harshly pronounced specific lyrics. This song was fantastically executed.
However I think the crowd, was not particularly the best audience that the passionate tribute act could have had. When they performed ‘Rusholme Ruffians’ the audience were very dull as I don’t think that the younger generation knew this song, even though it is off the ‘Meat is Murder’ album. On the other hand, the crowd did appreciate their passionate performance so once the guitars cancelled of the song – they received a big cheer. The song that closed off their first set was ‘Nowhere Fast’ and the performers really connected with each other during this song. Sampson, as “Morrissey” handed the microphone over to the audience on specific lines such as;
“And when a train goes by, it’s such a sad sound.”
The performance began to get very intense when he added a swear word into the song, in order to express his passion as Sampson emphasises the lyrics of;
“The poor and the needy are selfish and greedy on her FUCKING terms.”
So to me this performance was one of their most powerful and passionate performances that I had seen so far.
After the short break when everybody went to the terrace for a drink and/or a cigarette, The Smyths entered the stage for their last set at 21:45. Sampson had changed from his polka dot shirt into a more stereotypical Morrissey, by wearing a thin cardigan with nothing on underneath it. During the second half they played quite a few songs, some off the ‘Meat is Murder’ album such as – ‘What She Said’, ‘I Want the One I Can’t Have’, ‘Well I Wonder’ and then obviously the more well-known, popular songs like - ‘There is a Light That Never Goes Out’, ‘Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now’, ‘Bigmouth Strikes Again’, ‘This Charming Man’ and the last performance of the night to close their set off was ‘How Soon is Now’ which is also off the ‘Meat is Murder’ album.
The crowd got a lot more enthusiastic towards the end; due to the more popular songs being performed, and the crowd’s energy also heavily influenced the performers too. The bassist began to get a little bit silly and stuck his plectrum to his forehead; and Sampson’s cardigan was falling off one shoulder, as he passionately performed the songs.
Every song was brilliantly executed, regardless of the audience’s reactions. For me, the crowd make the gig as they create the atmosphere and their energy influences the performers. However, you don’t pay to see the crowd – you pay to see the band. They have definitely lived up to my expectations and that is why I am going to give them a 9/10. I would definitely recommend that you go to see them if you’re a big Smiths fan, as they aren’t expensive and they put on a cracking show!
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