Every so often you hear a single song and immediately know you’re going to end up buying a concert ticket. That’s exactly what happened when I heard a track from Beth Orton’s excellent album Weather Alive. Before the song had even finished, I was already checking tour dates.
Fortunately, Emma was more than happy to come along for the ride.
Beth Orton has always occupied a unique space in British music. Blending folk, electronica and singer-songwriter traditions, she has spent decades creating records that feel both intimate and adventurous. While many artists become trapped by expectations, Beth has consistently followed her own path, and Weather Alive felt like another strong chapter in an already impressive career.
Emma and I managed to secure a position right down the front, which naturally increased the likelihood of some form of audience interaction. As anyone who has attended gigs in Scotland knows, complete silence from the crowd is rarely guaranteed.
At one point during the show Beth mentioned Covid, which prompted me to shout, “There is no Covid!”
Unfortunately, she initially thought I had shouted, “I have Covid!”
To her credit, she immediately sounded concerned and apologetic. Once I clarified what I had actually said, she laughed and responded, “Exactly! It’s all a big fucking scam. Glad we’re all on the same page.”
The exchange got a tremendous reaction from those around us and instantly became one of the most memorable moments of the evening.
What made it even funnier was that the following day a review in The Scotsman chose to highlight a completely different piece of audience participation. Their opening paragraph focused on somebody complimenting Beth’s sequined dress, describing it as the best heckle of the night. While I have no objection to celebrating fine fashion, I couldn’t help feeling that my contribution and Beth’s response might have been slightly more newsworthy.
Still, journalists have to make difficult decisions.
The concert itself was superb. Beth’s voice sounded wonderful and the new material sat comfortably alongside songs from earlier in her catalogue. There was a warmth and confidence to the performance that comes from an artist who knows exactly who she is and no longer feels any need to prove anything.
Unfortunately, my own organisational skills were not quite operating at the same level. In a move that will surprise absolutely nobody who has followed this site for any length of time, I managed to leave my camera in the car. As a result, the only footage from the evening comes courtesy of Emma’s mobile phone.
Thankfully, she proved considerably more competent than I did.
So while the videos below may not be the high-quality recordings I had intended to capture, they still provide a glimpse of a memorable evening. Great songs, great company, an accidental misunderstanding from the stage and another reminder that some of the best moments at concerts are the ones nobody plans.
And for the record, I still think my heckle deserved a mention in the newspaper.
The Photos
Here are the photos from the evening.
Cheers!
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