TOM MEIGHAN // O2 ACADEMY, EDINBURGH
TOM MEIGHAN LIVE AT
EDINBURGH’S O2 ACADEMY
★★★★★ (5/5)
TOM MEIGHAN LIVE AT EDINBURGH’S O2 ACADEMY
PHOTOCREDIT: FRANK MURPHY
This feels like a big tour in Tom Meighan’s music career. At one time he was the frontman of arena rockers Kasabian with their four million in record sales, huge stadium and Glastonbury gigs and amazing anthemic back catalogue. Meighan is starting again. A well publicised court case led to him leaving the band and taking time out of music but now he is rebooting his career with a UK tour and the launch of The Reckoning his first self-penned album.
So, on a bright but cold day in Edinburgh a very excited crowd were full of anticipation as Tom strode out on to the stage. His band lined across the back of the stage thumping out the opening chords of Shout It Out from the new album and he stepped up onto the front riser and shouted to the cheering crowd, ‘I’m Tom Meighan, and I’m back from the dead!’.
The band were very strong, faultless and tight. They obviously had a ball and were loving playing both the Meighan and Kasabian tunes. Tom has assembled a group from other gigging bands, wild man Keyboardist/guitarist Bnann Infidel (The Infadels), guitarist Chris Haddon (Willie and the Bandits), stunning bassist Ele Lucas (Taunts), guitarist Brodie Maguire (Mother Vulture) and drummer and producer Gareth Young.
The second song Underdog set the pattern for the night with every new song being partnered by a Kasabian Anthem. Initially, this lead to a slightly patchy response from the crowd who went a bit quieter when the new tracks were played with their excitement building for the Kasabian tracks. But the reception for Meighan’s tunes got better and better with the audience cheering every song and the consummate frontman owning the stage, teasing, cajoling and challenging them, and drawing them in to join in with the hooky choruses of the songs.
TOM MEIGHAN LIVE AT EDINBURGH’S O2 ACADEMY
PHOTOCREDIT: FRANK MURPHY
The highlight of the night was a quieter one with his passionate, first single as a solo artist, Would You Mind, described by Tom as a gift to his fans who had supported him. The chorus feels like a brutally honest visit to his dark time Would you mind if I told you honestly what's really been happening to me? Would you reach out or will you let me fall? It doesn't matter 'cause I'll never risk that call. A proper goose bumps moment and the crowd’s reaction left Tom in tears.
Meighan’s new songs highlight a wide range of influences. From the rocky anthem Shout It Out, the strutting west coast Everyone’s Addicted to Something and the poppy Let It Ride. The songs are strong with easily absorbed choruses, riddled with hooks, all went down a treat with the wildly supportive crowd.
Tom Meighan is a supreme frontman, owning the stage as if he was conducting a hundred thousand at Reading rather than a couple of thousand in Edinburgh and the crowd loved him. The gig finished with Tom and the band belting out Meighan’s excellent Movin’ On and Kasabian’s crowd pleasing Fire. The audience left delighted and wanting more.
