Hooton Tennis Club, Trudy, The Orielles: The Kazimier, Liverpool

Hooton Tennis Club

A fun filled night was on the menu for Getintothis’ Craig MacDonald as Hooton Tennis Club brought their debut album to the last ever Harvest Sun gig at The Kazimier.

‘Tis the season to be jolly. Where friends and family, from near and far, come together to share tales and bring joy to others. Fuck it, you may even have a sprout.

As the Getintothis elves made their way into the musical Lapland that is The Kazimier, the sense of revelry was in full swing as we made our way through the masses already gathered for Yorkshire trio The Orielles. Sadly we only managed to catch the last couple of songs, but from what we do hear, the trio’s blend of dreamy surf rock is instantly charming, and although at times they do threaten to fall into their own fantasy, a solid base is there to build upon.

Next up to wrestle with the Christmas tree on the yuletide Kazimier stage was another three piece in the form of Trudy. The youthful trio have been causing positive rumblings through the Mersey grapevine with their emotive rock and roll come 60s surf sound and rightly so. Front man Oliver Taylor sounded like a man either on the brink of a breakdown or has just found divine intervention with his vocals flushed with deep feeling.

Painting images of adolescent conquests of the heart and soul, Trudy really know how to write a tune that sticks to you and we are under no doubt that tonight, we are not the only ones that they would have made an impression on. On All My Love they erupted with a plume of energy as they delivered their fusion of 50s Doo-Wop and rock and roll and we fully expect to see them continue to blossom in the new year.

Read our interview with Hooton Tennis Club from earlier this year

With chief wise man Bill Ryder-Jones spinning the decks, the army of Red Stripe drinkers took their merriment up another notch ’til it was time to welcome the final act of the night on what would be the last Harvest Sun show to grace The Kazimier. Since its formation in 2009, Harvest Sun has brought a bounty of aural delights to The Kazimier and the rest of Merseyside’s music spaces, and in Hooton Tennis Club tonight’s swansong is no exception.

When the Wirral foursome take to the stage they are greeted with the warmth of an old friend returning from their adventures in distant lands. From the moment they bounce into Up In The Air, they show why they have such adulation from their baiting public as they get the crowd grooving to their feel good flavour. The camaraderie between the group is charming to see and the good vibes they create surge out and fill all in The Kazimier.

The jangly effortless melodies that run through their debut album Highest Point In Cliff Town transfer seamlessly from studio to stage but with a more coarse feel to their sound that continues to develop. New track Meet Me On The Molly Bench gives a brief indication of a more concentrated sound from the quartet but when they roar into Jasper, the whimsical cracker gets everyone thirsty for more of the same, as does a tremendous rendition of Kathleen Sat On The Arm of Her Favourite Chair.

A brief moment of nostalgia fills the room when Hooton Tennis Club ask for silence, as they use techno wizardry to digitally map The Kazimier to ensure generations to come can listen to what the hallowed venue sounded like before it met its end. With the formalities over, they continue to set heads bouncing on a swell of happiness as P.O.W.E.R.F.U.L P.I.E.R.R.E brings another highlight to the occasion, with people grabbing passers by to dance in a unity of fun filled joy.

With their DIY home-made banner strung out above them, the glorious homecoming is complete as they invite a tambourine-wielding Ryder-Jones to join them for a mass sing along of Always Coming Back 2 You to bring the triumphant night to a close and with it another chapter of the ever shortening lifespan of the great venue.