Concert Review: Big Big Train live at Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh – Sept. 21st, 2024

Big Big Train
Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh
21 September 2024
Images and Words by Geoff Bailie

If you’re reading this website, you are presumably someone who listens to and enjoys music. History tells us that the first recorded music was created at the end of the 19th century – but of course music has been performed for much longer than that! With the availability and portability of music today, it’s always with us – and the streaming services are filled with playlists and suggestions for background music, music for when you’re working and even music to fall asleep to. I’ve nothing against any of those things but … I would suggest that music in its purest form is best experienced when it is performed in a situation where the musicians and the listener are together. And further than that – music takes on a new life and resonance when it is experienced in that way. Such was my experience seeing Big Big Train in Edinburgh!

The BBT line up has gone through some changes since the last time I saw them in 2022. Fans ruminated on the internet: would it be the same without … Well, when your band has 6 singers, 5 people who can play guitar, 5 people who can play keys, 2 drummers, plus excellent musicians on bass, violin, percussion, trumpet and light sabre, you can create practically anything sonically – and this has become a big part of the BBT show. It’s not just a show-off-y instrument switch, but a key part of the musical dynamic, and the show!

Prog is a genre which, more than and different from any other, the majority of the fan base are very happy (and in some cases insist) that the band plays their newest material. So with the 2023 tour previewing some new tracks and the 2024 USA shows being a deeper catalogue dive, the UK/ Europe audience (who have been well served with live BBT over the years) get shows lean heavily towards the new album, whose tracks make up 7 of the 12 songs performed. The show begins with the first 4 tracks from “The Likes of Us” in order – in many contexts that would be seen as a brave, perhaps even a foolish move, but the reaction of the crowd at the Queen’s Hall was akin to a band kicking off a show with their greatest hits, and standing ovations were already happening two songs in!

The opening “Light Left In The Day” has an overture quality, previewing themes and melodies which would feature later in the show, and already the musicians are multi tasking across their instruments. Frontman and main vocalist Alberto Bravin juggles the band leader/ conductor/ audience link-person, on top of singing and playing. An interesting recent switch in the BBT set up is that Nick D’Virgilio’s drum kit is stage left and rotated so that he can face sideways towards his band members. You can see the interaction, eye contact and nods/ cues are a key part of the band interplay, and, it looked to me, that this also provides the opportunity for some more spontaneous twists within the longer more open passages. The opener is followed by “Oblivion”, a powerful rocker which comes across really well live.

This is probably a good point to comment on the electric guitars, as this is one of the first of the recent touring cycles where there hasn’t been a dedicated lead guitarist (for a variety of reasons you can read about elsewhere). The majority of lead guitar work therefore falls to Rikard Sjöblom. In the previous BBT shows I have seen, Rikard’s soloing has always been a high point in the (small number) of occasions – so getting more of that is a major bonus … and of course he is more than up to the task! With his trusty JRS Strat and the new addition of a glorious white double necked guitar (as much of a prog icon as Greg’s Rickenbacker bass), every part was covered, and at times Alberto and him joined up on harmony guitar parts. The same can be said of Paul Mitchell who is playing trumpet, percussion and adding occasional vocals. The understandable absence of a full brass section, less practical as touring gets more extensive (and presumably expensive) is again something this versatile line up takes in its stride – Paul’s trumpet provides the signature brass element, and other parts are covered by guitars / keys, not just imitating the previous sounds but reworking some of those aspects of the familiar songs.

Suitably warmed up, the enthusiastic Scottish (and indeed many nationalities) audience is ready for the longest track from the recent album. “Beneath The Masts” is a BBT epic of the highest calibre, and is about Greg’s childhood growing up in the Midlands in England. A stage positioning shift happens at this point as Oskar and Nick take up the face-to-face keyboard position centre stage, while Greg and 12 string guitar take up a position alongside them – these is a really nice elements of the shows (presumably something that previously didn’t happen due to the sheer number on stage!), and shift of the focus around all the band members. Greg’s 12-string playing on this is exceptional and Rob Aubrey’s sound mix balances it perfectly with the keyboards (the Queen’s Hall with its stone floors isn’t a sound man’s dream, but the pros in the BBT crew ensure that all sounds great). A highlight of the album for me, the NDV led instrumental “The Devil’s Dressing Room” section is a great example of live music taking on a power that recorded music doesn’t quite achieve – to see as well as hear the musicians canter through this complex, almost jazz rock, section is a visual and sonic experience – it took my breath away! The fury of this part transitioned to the “On The Hillside” section, which ends the song, drawing the listener’s attention to the passing of time and the importance of experiencing life around you. Alberto’s introduction to “Skates On” highlighted the similar lyrical themes in this track, with once again the emotional depths of the song translating into making grown men cry, as I heard some confess after the show (Me? Oh no, I just had something in my eye, honest!).

Just over 30 minutes into the set, and we have the first look back to before the most recent album. Greg Spawton leaves his riser, to come to front of stage and provide the background to the track “The Last English King”, the opening track of 2002’s Bard album. Recorded at a challenging time in the band’s history, and the only album which has not been revisited / reissued, it’s a surprising choice for those reasons alone. However when played with this line up and delivered with the same passion as everything that has come before or since was, it’s a great track, telling the story of 1066 and The Battle of Hastings. I am sure the band had a lot of fun presenting something so unexpected! Next up, Folklore’s “The Transit of Venus Across The Sun” is back in the set, after two performance on the first tour with Alberto in 2022. This is an instrumentally less complex song, to an extent, but is a great chance to showcase both the fantastic vocal capabilities of this line up, and to give trumpet player Paul Mitchell some spotlight.

Having had “Beneath the Masts”, a song about the area Greg is from, things are balanced up with “Miramare”, written about a castle in the region of Italy that singer Bravin is from, another song which showcases both the combined vocal harmonies and Alberto’s singing and writing. The instrumental section within the second movement, “Bora Chiara” is one of the musical highlights of the show, as is the guitar solo in the section which follows. I’m not sure who plays that on the original recording (it could be Dave Foster) but Rikard shows he’s completely up for the job as the main guitarist. And yes, another standing ovation!

Switching gear, Nick and Rikard take the stage for “Telling the Bees”, which begins on acoustic guitar (Nick) and piano (Rikard). The stripped down arrangement has been a staple of the BBT shows since David Longdon’s passing, and is played as a tribute to him. What surprised me this time around was when the rest of the band took to the stage, with Alberto filling the drum stool! NDV led the crowd in a massive singalong and there’s no doubt this song retains a special place with the fans. In a set peppered with surprises, Common Ground’s “Black With Ink” is another unexpected guest! When it came out, this track stood out as a particularly rocking BBT song, and in that respect it fits this line up perfectly. Perhaps the destruction of precious books and antiquities isn’t the standard lyrical material for many bands, but this song has the advantage of allowing Alberto, Clare, Rikard and Nick to take a verse each, before Oskar closes the song off. It’s a track that’s just been crying out to be played live, so I was delighted to hear this.

The song that gave “The Likes Of Us” its title, “Last Eleven” has already proven itself as a great live song, and in the context of the set list, it was a perfect follow up to Black With In – once again it’s a track that hits an emotional punch, as most of us, at one point, will have found ourselves dealing with the discomfort of being an outsider (if you’re a prog fan, that could almost be a daily occurrence!). The last song in the main set was “Apollo”. I will confess that, given Apollo was part of the set each of the previous two times I have seen BBT live, I was initially a bit… ambivalent about hearing it again (and by that I mean, it would have been great to get something I’d never heard live before – selfish eh?). However, that lasted for about 30 seconds as the band supercharged this version, and played around a bit with the arrangement to give some solos right across the band. It really was excellent, and everyone agreed, rising to their feet just before the ending. On leaving the stage, the Edinburgh crowd were not going to let the band go without one more song… and soon they were back. I got the sense that the band were pleased, and possibly a bit surprised by the overall reaction to the set.

The evening closed with “Love Is The Light”, ideally placed at the end to provide the maximum singalong opportunity to finish the show. Eyes were wet and hands were raised, as were the voices of the crowd. As I’ve said earlier it’s amazing how such a recently released track can have become the closing anthem so quickly – but that’s a tribute to both the strength of the material and the performing ability of this band. And so BBT left the stage, and left the audience delighted. As ever, the last notes are rarely the final part of the experience, as within minutes band members were appearing in the lobby of the venue to speak to those who had come along. The merch queue buzzed (as ever BBT produced a wide range of nicely priced merch items including the indispensable tour programmes), Sharpies signed copies of the “Flare On The Lens” vinyl and Blu ray sets, and Selfies were posed for. A band member told me how important a part of playing live this is for them, and there is no doubt the fans feel the same.

With a band like Big Big Train, you can never quite tell what’s going to happen next! My takeaway from tonight is that as a touring unit, the band is at a new peak of both performing ability but also of energy and enjoyment (how many gigs have you been to where the singer has run a lap of the auditorium wielding a stage light as a light sabre – it’s amazing what adrenaline can make you do!). The album proved, they remain a strong writing and recording unit. The shows, including those beyond the UK and Europe are showing the power of this music in a live situation, which, as I said at the start, is exactly how it is meant to be. I missed the 2023 for a variety of reasons – tonight was a solid reminder that BBT are a band never to be missed!

Set list:

1. Light Left in the Day
2. Oblivion
3. Beneath the Masts
4. Skates On
5. The Last English King
6. The Transit of Venus Across the Sun
7. Miramare
8. Telling the Bees
9. Black With Ink
10. Last Eleven
11. Apollo

Encore:
12. Love is the Light

Live line up:
• Gregory Spawton: Bass guitar, bass pedals, guitars
• Nick D’Virgilio: Drums, vocals, percussion, guitars, keyboards
• Rikard Sjöblom: Guitars, keyboards, vocals
• Clare Lindley: Violin, guitar, keyboards, vocals
• Alberto Bravin: Lead vocals, guitar, keyboards, drums, light sabre
• Oskar Holldorff: Keyboards, vocals
• Paul Mitchell: Trumpet, percussion, vocals