Motion Tourist, The End Choir and The Notice. The Bridge Hotel. Newcastle. 5/4/11

Motion Tourist, The End Choir And The Notice. The Bridge Hotel. Newcastle. 5/4/11

“For Gods sake you sleepy fuckers, wake up!!!” – Gordon Ramsey – Hell’s Kitchen USA

Tuesday 5th April, The Bridge Hotel, Newcastle. The first in a series of gigs at The Bridge Hotel over the next few months. The Bridge Hotel, (not to be mistaken for The New Bridge ) is an intimate venue situated in the heart of Newcastle (two minutes walk from central station) and famous for its quayside views, real ales and relaxed atmosphere. Oh yeah… and the bloody great castle on its doorstep. The upstairs venue is surprisingly good and usually plays host to folk and blues music, but tonight entertains Motion Tourist with friends and guests The Notice and The End Choir.

Now let me get something off my chest before I carry on. There’s a bar right!… a nice looking bar too, with mirrors and glasses and bottles and beer pumps, right at the back, perfect for leaning on while you listen to bands. So why is it un-staffed? Why have I got to pepper a perfectly good night out with torturous trips down stairs, round corners and through 4 sets of doors, every half hour to get a few drinks?… Eh?… Not that I can afford pub prices any more mind you, bloody Tories.

Tuesday night, a notoriously crap telly night, your choice is either waiting to see if Gordon-fucking-Ramsey-finally-has-a-fucking-heart-attack or… go and watch three bands for three quid and get a free CD, with a fair bit of exercise running up and down stairs thrown in just for good measure?

Me… despite my morbid curiosity, I’ve opted for the healthy option!

First up, The Notice. Five little spunkers from Consett, with floppy Bieber haircuts thoroughly enjoying themselves, cranking out indie covers… nowt wrong with that at all! That’s what we say… I’d much rather watch 5 mates from school, pick up some cheap guitars and thrash the living hell out of them with big smiles on their faces, than watch some old fart noodling away to Whisky In The Jar, any day. Keep up the good work lads.

Next up the “inspirational”… (according to their Facebook page, anyway) End Choir, a band who’ve been together apparently only 3 months… though I sense some of these songs have been crafted in a previous life. What can I say… a mix of neat covers (The Maccabees – No Kind Words, stands out,) and their own material, delivered with bags of cocky, bouncy, energy with a nod towards Messrs. Barat and Doherty. Played their socks off… a good fun set that again, looked like they enjoyed.

Finally, combining mixing duties, door takings, and no doubt sweeping the floor at the end of the night, before locking up, the imitable Motion Tourist take the stage. We like these guys a lot, a real wake up call. An atmospheric, richer and fuller sound with every single gig they play, they’re getting better and more confident with every outing. The room has moronically, thinned out, but you can see that those who have remained, are widening their eyes in pleasant surprise as the room is engulfed in a sound much bigger than this pub.

Anthemic older material is dispersed with perfection, while new songs; Hearts & Heads and Forced Upon The Times, are showcased as a teaser for a new 5 track EP hopefully, out in May, which will also include re-recordings of Figures, Ludovico Technique and This Is An End. Rumour is, Hearts and Heads may even be released as a single.

Summer festivals and bigger stages beckon, to which I should imagine they’ll take to with ease, winning hearts along the way! With Evolution Emerging already confirmed and potentially 2 other summer festival dates still under wraps. Keep an eye on their Facebook page for the latest updates. They are also confirmed for REC-FEST in Ashington with Vinyl Jacket and the mighty Grandfather Birds on 21st August, with a score of gigs in Glasgow, York and London over the summer, dates to be confirmed in the next month.