Review: Paul Liddell & We Steal Flyers @ The Watch House

If anyone asked me how I got into the North East music scene, Paul Liddell would feature in a big chunk of the answer. The Sunderland singer-songwriter blew my mind with his many-layered-compositions, soulful vocals and unflinching lyricism when I first saw him back in 2011 (supporting Jake Morley in Independent) and I've been a fan ever since.

In the last few years Paul has made his home-town shows at The Watchouse in Roker a highlight of his musical calendar and tonight was no exception with around 80 people of 3 or more generations packing into the historic Sunderland Volunteer Life Brigade building for an intimate and warm-hearted show which as ever featured an excellent support act, this time in the form of We Steal Flyers. The award-winning unsigned Northumberland acoustic folk duo had brought their kids along and won the audience over very quickly with their beautifully performed songs, such as the exceptional Track, and their mightily funny back-and-forth banter with the audience in between songs. No wonder they rack up hundreds of shows each year around the UK and Europe.

Next up was Paul Liddell with his new live rig featuring; 3 guitars, including a 7-string electric and two acoustics with multiple pickups, a massive pedal-board, MIDI, laptop and many other bits of kit, the likes of which I couldn't comprehend even after a brief post-gig explanation from Paul himself. Getting it all plugged in was an impressive feat in-and-of itself. Paul's music really is a 21^st Century take on the one-man band, and his live rig allowed him to loop multiple guitar, bass, synth and percussion parts all from one single-guitar and vocal mic per song.

All the tech however was secondary to the performance and the songs which were as heartfelt, uncompromising and melodic as ever. The set list had markedly evolved since I saw him in the summer and was dominated by songs from his 2016 album; The Mean Seeds of Yield, notably the blues groove of Heartbeat, the dystopian social commentary on Too Much Talk and the majestic Little Rivers - inspired by a chance meeting with an unsuccessful German folk artist who nonetheless continues to make music for the sheer love of it. Here's to hoping Paul Liddell and his team will be making new music and putting on home-town shows for many years to come.