It was a relief to step inside The Tivoli Theatre (23 February) and escape the heavy rain. Though I was surprised to find even beneath the shelter there were clouds hanging over my head.
They were draped from the ceiling, white and infinitely less ominous than those in the sky; I admired the idea as Ball Park Music promptly entered the stage.
Frontman Sam Cromack seemed to avoid eye contact with the crowd as he stood front and centre, shy smile and shirt buttoned high. Without a word, the band delved into ‘Cocaine Lion’, my first taste of an unexpectedly foreign set list.
As per the ‘Puddinghead’ album order ‘Everything Is Shit Except My Friendship With You’ followed, warm and enthusiastic, instrumentals post-chorus (sounding almost Bluejuice-like) executed brilliantly.
The band paused to say hello before performing recent single, ‘The Perfect Life Does Not Exist’, fans already well familiar, soon rewinding to 2012 with bluesy number, ‘Cost Of Lifestyle’.
Only two-years-old yet ‘Feelings’ sounded like a totally different Ball Park; I was transfixed by keyboardist Paul Furness aptly coordinating the synths and cowbell. “Let’s take it all the way back to album one song one,” Sam announced, once again ticking back the time and exploding into ‘Literally Baby’.
They eased into the psychedelic introduction of ‘The End Times’, its electronic embellishments summarising 2018 record ‘Good Mood’s alternative influences, before 2012 album ‘Museum’ resurfaced with beauty, ‘Surrender’.
All but Sam left the stage, illuminated by a spotlight. He thanked ‘Luke’ for ‘bringing his guitars back and forth’, adding: “I once found a packet of his almonds in my guitar case, so, I decided to use one as a pick. I might actually ask him to bring me one now; I can be the first person who’s used a nut to strum a song.”
The result was a beautiful, acoustic-rendition of ‘It’s Nice To Be Alive’, crowd transfixed, reciting every word.
‘Whipping Boy’ came next, the melancholy ‘Coming Down’ ironically generating plenty of excitement, slow pace sustained with ‘Leef’. “We kind of like writing love songs, it feels right to us,” Sam explained prior. “I think this is one of our best.”
He ripped his guitar off for the quirky rousings of ‘Fence Sitter’ before thrashing through ‘Hands Off My Body’. I made a mental note to file the 2018 track away as an instant favourite; think Arctic Monkeys: short, sharp and dark; a creative risk well taken.
The clever ‘Sad Rude Future Dude’ was another set highlight; in awe, I began to ask myself, ‘how deep is their songwriting pool?’ The band wisely rounded off the set with two stellar fan favourites, ‘She Only Loves Me When I’m There’ and ‘Trippin’ The Light Fantastic’, closing on star ‘Good Mood’ single, ‘Exactly How You Are’.
Admittedly, I felt arrogant pre-gig: “I’ve been listening to Ball Park Music for years, the performance will be recognisable start to finish.” The 20-song set (including the encore) in fact proved the exact opposite; I had barely scratched the surface.
Turns out I’ve been ignorantly sifting through the same dozen songs blatantly disregarding the bank of music beneath them; in a mere eight years, the band’s released a whopping five studio albums, every one managing to maintain its relevance after being promptly thrown into the spotlight.
While singer Sam Cromack may be at the forefront of the creative process, each band member undeniably plays their part; it’s truly a team of exceptionally talented musicians, I was particularly impressed by bassist Jennifer Boyce’s impeccable harmonies (and infectious smile).
I remember reminding myself that the show was going to be the first leg of their national tour, and now I can’t help but wonder whether it will continue to develop and progress. By the end of those 90, short minutes alone each band member had totally unfurled, Sam especially, shy smile and shirt buttoned high obscured by a blinding amount of confidence, vigour and utmost comfort on stage.
Despite only playing four or so songs from 2018 album ‘Good Mood’, the remarkable familiarity and positive response from fans has clearly categorised the record as a home run (hit out of the ballpark, so to speak).
It’ll be unbelievable if Ball Park Music preserve their impressive ‘one release every two year’ trajectory, though rest assured, something tells me that songwriting pool definitely ain't no shallow feat.
