Travis

Men of the people, Travis, those cuddly, loveable pop Scotsters with their pathos laiden tunes of hope, forgiveness and yearning. They love their fans, and wouldn’t do anything to rip them off, cos they’re the good guys. Right? Well, why are they here at all?

Wembley Arena is perhaps the most uniquely soul crushing environment in which bands regularly play. A small industrial warehouse in the outer reaches of North London that has no obvious qualities whatsoever; the sound is beyond redemption, the staff have to follow draconian laws, and seem to relish the enforcement of them: No drinking, no smoking no smiling. This may seem like an unreasonable and unprovoked rant but you cant review a Wembley Arena gig without relating to the environment.

Doves appear first, four men, some guitars and a slew of songs to be road tested before the release of sophomore album ‘The Last Broadcast’. We get five of these in a set that is notable for the absence of new single ‘There Goes The Fear’. That song sets the tone for the new tracks offered up; the tunes are more upbeat and the band appear to have progressed beyond the desolate edge that accompanied the appropriately entitled ‘Lost Souls’. I can’t really tell you much more than that, because it was pretty hard to make out anything on a more specific level, thanks to the awful sound that echoed (it really is a case of that) throughout the hall. Obviously the band were not provided/did not have the equipment to project their sound across a massive arena such as Wembley and were met with a muted and unappreciative sound. Even the majestic bluster of 'The Cedar Room' failed to raise more than a ripple.

Waves of applause were reserved for Hoxton favourites Travis; not a surprising event nor is it particularly undeserved. Travis have the Midas touch in writing far-reaching anthems and that’s reflected in the crowd they draw tonight. To be honest, these guys and girls look like the people that would rarely leave the comfort of their popcorn selling venue. Why bother? Their bands come to them; James, Stereophonics, Travis, Tom Jones, Jamiroquai and M People all inhabit these places with dull regularity and Travis don’t too look out of place either.

That is in part thanks to their arena sized songs; the calibre of ‘Why Does It Always Rain On Me?’, ‘Writing To Reach You’ and ‘Side’; all well crafted songs. The other reason is the depressing predictability of their set with it’s tried and trusted single-album track-single format which is uninspiringly tailored to its audience. There is no challenge to playing the enormodomes of this world, no one can see when you don’t give a shit, and it’s very hard to give a shit when the money starts rolling in and the red carpets start rolling out. For a band that trades off on its pathos and emotion; it’s walking a thin line with the other side marked ‘cynicism’.