Many guitarist's are synonymous with a certain type of guitar. You know the sort of thing - Jimi Hendrix and his Stratocaster, Slash (or a ruder word for having a wee as I like to call him!!!) and the black Les Paul Custom, etc.etc. Ash's Tim Wheeler is no exception and is known for his love of the Gibson Flying V. Bearing this in mind as Ash took to the stage, Tim came on to the stage last, brandishing his Flying V like a medieval torch with the guitar actually being on fire. Got to say this did look fantastic. So once the flames were out would Ash match this spectacular entrance? In a word. Yes. Oh, you want more than a word.

Well, I would of been fairly happy with just hearing 'Girl From Mars' ,which came very early in the set (second song), at the beginning of the evening. Once that was out the way, I realised I was definitely craving more than that. And more than that I got. I think Ash are one of those rare guitar bands that write fantastic pop tunes. They have probably got a little more heavy with age but it doesn't take away how lovely the songs are. I'm sure they would work just as well acoustically. Their latest offering, 'Meltdown', shows that they have not lost any hunger for writing a decent tune to make you want to jump around uncontrollably, either. We were treated to a mixture of songs from the new album such as Clones, Vampire Lover and Renegade Cavalcade to classic songs like Shining Light and Goldfinger. The band seemed well up for it and even when the slower songs were being played it didn't feel like a lull in the pace of the show.

As the band aren't just about Tim Wheeler, I had better address the matter of mentioning the other band members. Rick McMurray kept everything going at the aforementioned pace by giving it loads on the drums. Bassist Mark Hamilton seemed to be remembering the old adage of ' if the band is having a good time, the audience will too'. I also would like to pay homage to his bass playing - he made his very high standard of musicianship look very easy - something that any of us who struggle to play any instrument know is very hard to do!!! Last but by no means least I would like to mention Charlotte Hatherley. Being a red blooded male, I think I had better avoid temptation and not mention that she was just about wearing the teeniest of denim skirts - Oh damn, there you go I mentioned it!!! She was (and still is!) much more than an addition of glamour for the band. She certainly knows how to play a guitar well and her backing vocals made an excellent contrast to Tim's. I think that her forthcoming solo album might well be one to check out.

It is always a good result when a band finish on a song that everybody knows instead of going for an obscure b-side that perhaps one or two diehard fans in the venue might just about remember from seeing the band 'before they were famous' and Ash didn't let me down on that front. The gig started with a guitar on fire and ended with the classic Burn Baby, Burn. After all that excitement, I just might!


Ric Mansell


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