Tag: The Piece Hall

Middle Age Gigging: Embrace at The Piece Hall, June 2026.

My memory is a little hazy these days, in keeping with my 50 something status. Some things just stick though, however long ago they happened.

Around 28 years ago I was living in a flat above a cobblers in Pudsey, West Yorkshire. I was unemployed and missing Newcastle. Late one night though, not long after we’d moved there, my heart was lifted as out on the street underneath our window a young lad sang loudly on his way home from the pub next door. The song? ‘All You Good Good People’. I was fully on board with Embrace at this point, having written about them for a work magazine some months previously. Needless to say, I joined in with his singing.

Embrace have been a constant for almost all of my adult years; from my early twenties all the way through. That’ll be the same for a lot of people. So today’s Piece Hall gig feels like a big deal, celebrating what feels a little bit like 30 years together.

First up are local band The Hazy Janes, a bluesy rock trio who seem to be having a whale of a time. Their energy gets the crowd going and more to the point helps to warm us all up as it’s bloody freezing! They’re certainly not overawed by the setting and serve up a cracking set. Singer Ellis is an excellent front man and it’s a bit of a treat to have them opening up.

We’re running late though and so after a shorter than expected break it’s time for Idlewild. They’re a band that, I must admit, I wasn’t particularly into in their pomp but tonight I definitely warm to them.

Opener ‘You Held the World in your Arms’ gets us off to a great start and songs like ‘Little Discourage’ and ‘American English’ help to raise the bar. Idlewild are quite the spectacle with both guitarists rocking out and singer Roddy proving quite an addictive watch for me. There’s an awkwardness that I can’t take my eyes off, but his voice is superb throughout and all in all they deliver a quite brilliant set.

In truth though, today is about one band and one band only; the legendary Embrace and before too long the stage is set and we’re treated to a little backstage video that allows us to watch their approach. And then, they’re there and it’s time to celebrate a quite magnificent 30 years.

Opener ‘All You Good Good People’ is just wonderful – as ever – and it’s clear from the off that the band are thoroughly enjoying themselves. It sounds like everyone is belting out the lyrics at the top of their voices and it might be a good time to apologise to anyone near me for possibly drowning out Danny and also singing the wrong words with a well chosen selection of the right ones for the whole night. Soz, I’m just terrible at remembering lyrics even if I’ve been singing them everywhere for 30 years!

New song ‘Road to Nowhere’ comes next and keeps up the pace before there’s an absolutely paint stripping version of ‘One Big Family’, a song which I’ll never, ever tire of.

A quick mention for bassist Steve at this point, who I don’t think I’ve ever seen so animated. There was a smile and acknowledgement of the crowd at the start that just said, ‘I’ve got the best job in the world’ and it was an absolute joy to behold from where I was, right in front of him.

‘Someday’ and ‘Looking As You Are’ come next with the latter featuring the background wall of old photos of the band as well as ones sent in by the fans, which means that I find myself singing along and simultaneously kicking myself after we forgot to send ours in. It doesn’t matter; it sounds and looks great.

‘We Are It’ follows and again, it’s a great version which helps to ramp up the atmosphere a tiny bit more, but I have to say I’m running out of patience with Danny for not including me in his pointing bit in the chorus. I’m right here! I can be ‘it’ too!

Thankfully, all is forgiven with the reappearance of old live favourite ‘Save Me’ as the next song in the set. I’m getting far too old to be jumping up and down to the chorus, particularly for a bloke with a pacemaker (rock and indeed roll, huh kids?) but tonight it can’t be avoided. Danny certainly seems to be enjoying the spectacle of a few thousand oldies pogoing! It’s such a treat to hear this being played live again though! Mind you, if they’d followed it with ‘New Adam, New Eve’ I think I’d have had to have called for breathing apparatus, so I’m thankful that new song ‘Pure O’ allows me a breather simply because…you guessed it, I don’t know the words properly!

Next comes new one ‘Stop’ which I think might prove to be a bit of a classic and it certainly sounds good tonight. ‘A Glorious Day’ then brings the memories of Millennium Square all those years ago in Leeds flooding back. Two similar evenings to tonight as I recall and it really brings it home to me that some of us are lucky enough to have had nights like that and are then still enjoying the band all these years later.

‘Coming Home’ brings the first quiet tears of the night. It’s a superb song and an absolutely brilliant version on the night, but Richard’s line ‘I’d have picked you all up and never put you down’ gets me every time. Another one that’s going to be a classic, I reckon.

‘Refugees’ is then another incredible performance from Richard and it seems this is a song that simply never fails live. It doesn’t matter about the venue, I feel like I’m always witnessing something spectacular when we ‘lift off this metropolis’.

It’s getting late and we’re well aware that at least the first part of tonight’s gig is closing. First there’s a heart felt rendition of ‘Get Out of My Own Way’ which is followed by another new one in ‘Up In Your Feelings’. Then it’s time for another little tear with a stunning ‘Gravity’ – first dance at our wedding, yet I still don’t quite know whether gravity’s turning or pulling – followed by the perfect end to this part of the set, in ‘Ashes’. More jumping, more screaming of lyrics and more keeping an eye on my heartbeat. It doesn’t matter. It’s all well worth it.

I’ve all but given up hope of hearing ‘Wonder’ or ‘Dry Kids’ or ‘Hooligan’ but when Embrace return to the stage it’s great to hear ‘Exploding Machines’ as the encore opener. Then it’s ‘Emily’, ‘The Love it Takes’ and ‘Come Back To What You Know’, before it’s just a massive joyous singalong of ‘The Good Will Out’. And that’s been the thing with Embrace for however long they’ve been in your life…it’s always just been a massive joyous singalong. Everyone smiling, everyone singing, everyone dancing to a band and their songs that simply mean the world; one big family. Danny, Richard, Mike, Mickey, Steve – here’s to the next 30 years!

Middle Age Gigging: Embrace at The Piece Hall, Halifax.

I can’t honestly say that this was a gig that I was looking forward to, which is quite unusual for me as I’ve been going to see bands live since I was 15. It’s especially strange because this is Embrace, probably my favourite band and one that I’ve seen live too many times to keep track of. But it’s been a 25 year journey.

What worried me was the presence of a pacemaker in my body. In terms of ‘middle age gigging’ this is entirely new ground. I’ve had reservations before, just because my ageing body can’t keep up with all of the jumping around that going to a gig involves. But, I’ve always coped. This was to be my first gig with my new robot attachment though!

The last time I saw Embrace in Sheffield last year, unbeknownst to my wife, I suffered with a bout of palpitations and dizziness at the venue shortly before the gig. My heart was racing, I was sweating and then at the end of it all – as was the way at this pre-pacemaker time – I nearly passed out with the dizziness that brought it all to an end. I saw the gig out though and it was fantastic.

Today, in true rock and roll style, the missus misreads her spreadsheet or something and it means that we’re an hour early getting to the venue. Channeling our inner rock gods though…we wander around Halifax for a bit before going back to The Piece Hall and worrying about which queue will be the quickest.

Once we’re in, we’re so early that even a leisurely stroll into the venue means that we manage to get spots on the barrier at the front. A bit of pacemaker protection. Nice! There’s not much protection from the stiff cold breeze, however, and after about half an hour I’m freezing and regretting my rock and roll decision not to bring a hoodie!

Thankfully, the first support act, Ellur, emit warmth, as well as glamour and a smattering of theatricality. We’ve seen Ellur before, last year supporting Embrace in Sheffield, where they were refreshingly good. At the time I wrote about comparisons to First Aid Kit and even Belinda Carlisle and I’d add a bit of Fleetwood Mac to that list after tonight, while adding that they’re very much Ellur too, if that makes sense.

Tonight, Ellur are brilliant. The band are clearly thrilled to be here as Halifax is home territory, but it’s more than that. They’re a band that are finding their way, but you wouldn’t really know it and they play with a heady mix of giddiness and belief in their songs. Singer Ellur has incredible stage presence. It’s like she completely believes that she should be here. And she’s right. They all are. There’s a mesmeric quality about the way Ellur owns the stage, but that’s also fair to say about the rest of the band too. The guitarist and drummer are grinning all the way through the set and the keyboard player adds beautiful harmonies to Ellur’s already powerful voice.

‘Burn It All Down’ and ‘Anywhere’ are the stand out tracks for me. ‘Anywhere’ in particular sticks in my head, which is always a good sign as I’m notoriously bad at remembering lyrics, so having heard this track only a few times before, for me to remember even small sections is a mark of its quality! It’s not just me either. I look round a few times to see lots of people singing and also note the fact that so many people are here already watching Ellur on stage.

It’s an atmospheric and exciting set that’s over all too quickly; the perfect appetizer – I hope that’s not too condescending – for what’s to come.

There’s a quick change of gear and before we know it Starsailor take to the stage. Singer James Walsh – aka the nicest man in indie rock – is all smiles too, but it’s the songs that will win the day here. From the opening chords of ‘Poor Misguided Fool’ right through to the familiar anthemic brilliance of ‘Good Souls’ this is a joy to behold. Everyone is smiling and the singalong is getting louder by the line. Once again, the band are relaxed and it makes for a thoroughly enjoyable watch.

From the off, I find myself watching the bass player, knowing that something’s not right, but as I don’t know Starsailor that well, I can’t pinpoint what it is. When James reveals that regular bass player James Stelfox was ‘unavalailable for selection’ the penny drops, but I still can’t quite place the new bloke. Turns out it’s Andy Dunlop from Travis doing a sterling job! The band are as tight as ever and songs that go back over 20 years clearly stand the test of time.

Watching Starsailor is a bit like meeting up with old mates and finding that despite your nerves, the conversation flows as it ever did and you still like each other just as much. And it’s an analogy that is taken further when singer James reveals the reason why he’s wearing shorts is that he’s had minor surgery and has been advised to wear loose clothing! So, I’m not the only one having to adapt for medical reasons tonight!

The combination of the brilliant ‘newness’ of Ellur and the familiar and wonderful songs of Starsailor have helped to calm my nerves and suddenly the pacemaker is nothing but a passing thought (now there’s a sentence I never dreaned I’d write in a review!) and I feel ready to enjoy Embrace.

At 9pm, the sun is one the wane and it’s over to Embrace to supply us with warmth and light. It’s a mission that they not only accept, but one that they smash out of the park. There must be something in the air tonight (apologies for lapsing into Phil Collins there) because once again everyone on stage is smiling. But Embrace have taken it up a notch and somewhere, Cheshire presumably, there are several cats missing their grins.

This is a gig to celebrate the 25th anniversary of their debut album, ‘The Good Will Out’ and so the record will be played in its entirety, which is a real treat. We kick off with ‘All You Good Good People’ and it is f***ing wonderful to be alive! I’ve forgotten my problems and am singing at the top of my voice – more apologies, this time to anyone who was near me! But the songs on this album are simply anthemic and it’s hard not to join in. We want to listen, but we want to sing too and I think the band love that anyway, so sing we do!

Danny is on great form and is very clearly enjoying every second of this. Always one for jumping around or gesturing, tonight he’s dancing, actually dancing and it’s clear that it’s not just the audience that are losing themselves in the songs. And while I don’t think the invite from ‘Strictly’ will be in the post any time soon (sorry Danny), it’s brilliant to see how much he’s loving the gig. He jokes about us all coming back for the 50th anniversary of the album and right now I’d tell you I’d be there in a heartbeat…if the bugger keeps working that is!

This is an album chock full of tunes and one that means a great deal of stuff to a great deal people and a glance around me confirms just that. There are arms aloft, eyes glued to the stage and everyone is either smiling or singing!

By the time we get to ‘One Big Family’ the atmosphere is simply amazing and there can’t be a member of the audience or band who isn’t having the time of their lives. The energy goes up a notch for this one and while it’s followed by slower songs in ‘Higher Sights’ and ‘Retread’ there’s no let up in the noise or the enjoyment.

The band close the set with the last track on the album, naturally. ‘The Good Will Out’ is quite simply a classic, so it’s a shame that the attention of myself and those around me is drawn away by some brainless behaviour in the crowd as some folk decide they’re more important than the rest of us and try to barge their way to the front. So, while I’d like to say that this part of the set was brought to an emotional end, I can’t because almost all 8 minutes or so of the song pass with me concentrating mainly on keeping my place at the front, protecting my wife and not lamping a total stranger who pushed me into a barrier.

Thankfully, Embrace have got 25 year’s worth of massive tunes to call on, so it’s all quickly forgotten when they come back out for a mini ‘greatest hits’ type set. We’re treated to new songs ‘Death Is Not The End’ and ‘We Are It’, both of which prove that the band haven’t lost their happy knack for writing a banger. Then there’s what feels like a rare appearance for ‘Nature’s Law’ before Richard takes over the vocals on a scintillating version of ‘Refugees’.

With closing songs, ‘Gravity’ and ‘Ashes’ there’s a huge clash of emotions. ‘Gravity’ is just beautiful and it’s not long before I find I’m shedding a little bit of a tear. It was the first dance at my wedding for starters, but the line ‘Can you hear my heart beating’, while I clutch my wife’s hand, takes on a whole new meaning given the last few months.

Thankfully, I’m quickly snapped out of this lull by ‘Ashes’. It’s become familiar now for Danny to ask us to jump up and down during this track, not because we need the encouragement, but more of a warning for our backs and knees! Try as I might to protect both back and knees, the opening bars spring them into life and I’m bouncing along and joining the rest of The Piece Hall in shouting the lyrics back at the band. Once again, ‘Ashes’ creates a moment for us all and it’s an incredible way to end an incredible event.

All that’s left is for us to drag our weary bodies back to the car. As we file out into the night I decide that tomorrow will be spent in the pursuit of rest and relaxation only, aided by my good friends Voltarol, paracetamol, crisps, caffeine and telly. It’s a gig I’ll remember for a long, long time and one that I’m still smiling about. But I really need to rest!