The Feeling at Under the Bridge

Christmas is upon us and to celebrate the occasion The Feeling performed an intimate Christmas show at Under The Bridge this weekend.

Before the band comes onstage, the atmosphere is super relaxed. Dan Gillespie and co are a little late for the scheduled time but nobody seems to realise or care. Some people wear Christmas jumpers or Santa hats, the venue appropriately decorated.

When The Feeling appear the crowd roars with delight – the first song is named after the group’s latest record Boy Cried Wolf and immediately there’s a sense of merriment. It is with Fill My Little World, though, that things start heating up as everyone waves hands and sings “Hey, whoa” to accompany the song. The concert features a mix of oldies (mainly from the first album), new tracks and – sensibly – typical Christmas tunes.

Never Be Lonely is quite an act in itself. The fans are all dancing and clapping, but Gillespie’s charisma adds something to the general enjoyment. The singer hits a fairly prolonged high note, then injures himself while playing but he doesn’t stop the performance even when bleeding – as he hurriedly medicates himself, he lets the audience do the work.

Afterwards there’s a particular section involving violinists. Sweets, streamers and party poppers are thrown on the audience and Stop the Cavalry (Gillespie’s favourite Christmas song) is played with energy and received with warmth. As the following song approaches, somebody asks for silence and Rosé is delivered with delicacy and intensity at the same time.

I Thought It Was Over is more upbeat, with robotic sounds and reveals a more biting vein in Gillespie’s vocals. The Gloves are Off is initially less engaging but towards its end a killing riff, growing heavier, twists the song’s finale.

The Feeling’s most famous and most loved track, Sewn, is naturally outstanding – the band is not tired of playing it and does so with the same emotional charge and technical skills as ever and the people’s response is predictably huge. A rocking cover of Mariah Carey’s classic All I Want for Christmas, with suds now replacing streamers, makes everyone go wild. Love It When You Call bids goodbye on such enthusiasm that everybody calls for more.

The encore sees the band dressed up as Santa, singing Xmas Is for Children (a song Gillespie wrote a couple of years ago): the singer asks those who surround them to sit down. East 17’s Stay Another Day closes a merry show.

Rita Vicinanza

For further information and future events visit The Feeling’s website here.

Watch a live performance of Sewn here: