The Levellers - Carling Academy, Birmingham - 8/12/06 15 years…
 | | The Levellers photo: Simon White |
It was most apt that the second song in the Levellers’ set tonight was
15 years – because it seems like nearly that long since I saw them play at Portsmouth Guildhall, supported by Chumbawamba (before they reinvented themselves and got infamous for damping down John Prescott). I remember watching from the balcony as the floor of the hall looked like it was going to buckle under the waves of fans bouncing up and down in time.
 | | The Levellers photo: Simon White |
I was slightly apprehensive before the Birmingham date – in recent years I’ve seen a number of bands who arguably peaked in the early to mid 1990s look rather dreary, tired and washed out hit the road to top up their pension schemes. However, it was clear from the start I was worried about nothing as they powered through 100 Years, 15 Years and Last Man Alive with hardly a pause for breath. Looking around the majority of the crowd were well up for it though I imagine many of them hadn’t seen the inside of a gig for a few years.
 | | The Levellers photo: Simon White |
There was a great connection obvious between the band, the crowd and the music – plus perhaps the best-natured crowd-surfers and security I’ve seen for some time – the first one rewarded by lead singer Mark Chadwick’s outstretched hand from the stage. On stage at a family friendly 8:20 the band played 20 tracks through to about a curfew of about 10pm, though some of the gig-goers seemed to have forgotten what an encore is and the venue was already emptying before the second encore/final jig.
 | | The Levellers photo: Simon White |
This performance of “What You Know” where they were joined on stage by their support for the evening, 3 Daft Monkeys, was typical Levellers – big music, lots of smiles, lots of fun. The rest of the set did seem to be dominated by the older rather than recent releases. The band have been working solidly over the years, but their best known anthems, such as “Liberty”, “One Way”, “Boatman” and “15 Years” all come from their early rather than more recent work. It used to be that every alternative or student venue would be full of a room of people all dancing a very bad jig and shouting there was “only one way of life” together without a trace of irony.
 | | The Levellers photo: Simon White |
Not any more and some of the politics is coming across a little dated. The band came on stage to anti-Iraq-war sentiment but their music is more about the 80s – “Another Man’s Cause” refers to the 1982 Falklands War that’s a reference lost on many young people today. But it’s a mistake to get lost in the pretension – The Levellers are about music before politics – despite the lyrics the band themselves have said they’re about making music because that’s what they enjoy doing.
 | | The Levellers photo: Simon White |
These days while performers like The Levellers, New Model Army, Rev Hammer and Billy Bragg all make some kind of living and have some kind of following they don’t have the cachet and widespread popularity they used to – which is an absolute shame. Overall it was an excellent gig. The band looked happy, relaxed and engaged; the crowd were smiling; the floor was pounding; the mood was upbeat and enthusiastic – there might be more to get from a gig – but this is good, honest, folk-indie-rock music done by people who have been doing it for a while now. Next time the tour caravan rolls into town – make sure you’re there! | 
