Alphabeat at Koko

On Wednesday I accompanied Chris to see his pop heroes du jour, Alphabeat. They were playing at Koko, one of my least favourite venues which is a triumph of style over purpose with awful views of the stage and a ridiculous tunnel to get in and out, but it seemed like it was sold out, so good on the 'Beat.

They were showcasing their new album, 'The Beat Is...' interspersed with massive crowd-pleasers from the first record and, I have to admit, I prefer the simple pop of the first album to the pseudo-'90s beats of the second. But, played live, the songs sound much less '90s. I don't understand why they traded in pure pop for '90s dance which, I have to say, just makes some of the songs sound like cover versions of old songs. Sorry.

Live, the 'Beaters don't stand still for a moment (which probably helps to keep them all stick thin) and put on a good show, solid musical backing to Anders and Stine at the front on vocals. They're a good combo and very slick and professional. Anders needs a bigger stage than Koko to throw himself around and I did worry when he clambered up onto the speakers - careful, lad! And Stine has an odd image topped off with deep red hair, a sort of don't-touch-me virgin image while she's dressed in see-through black lace, very seductive but confusing at the same time.

They played a nice selection of songs from both albums, opening with 'Fantastic 6' and playing '10,000 Nights', 'Touch Me Touching You' and the lovely 'Boyfriend' from the first album along with 'The Spell', 'Hole in my Heart' and the new single, 'DJ'. The audience exerted it's irritation factor by talking over the quiet opening of 'Chess' but seemed to come round to it by the chorus.

They ended with their usual closer, 'Fascination' with the long, slow and moody synth opening, gradually picking up the pace as the chant of 'The word is on your lips, say the word' winds up - a great way to end the show on a high.

As is often the case at Koko, there were more lights on the crowd than on the stage so there are no photos of the gig, but here's the vidoe for the new single, 'DJ'. Enjoy!