Lloyd Cole Small Ensemble
Bristol St George’s Hall
2nd November, 2010

The opening notes of the classic Perfect Skin set the tone and sparked warm applause in the majestic old church. Having forsaken the solo tag, Cole now fronts his self-styled all-acoustic ‘baby bluegrass’ trio, accompanied by expert musicians Mark Schwaber & Matt Cullen. All three play guitar and, at various points, Cullen moved to banjo, while Schwaber beautifully picked his mandolin. Only Cole’s voice is amplified. Latest album, Broken Record, formed the backbone, together with a mixture from Cole’s extensive catalogue. The Dylan-esque Why In The World stood out, as did the caustic Writers Retreat!, with its wonderful Maggie May mandolin stylings. Mid-90s offerings Trigger Happy and So You’d Like To Save The World also excelled. A few fan favourites were re-worked and slower paced, Cole delivering beautiful, mandolin-enhanced versions of Rattlesnakes and 2CV. Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken? was as poignant as it was in 1984, and a sumptuous Forest Fire received great applause. Lost Weekend was saved for the encore and the reserved crowd finally perked up courage to sing along.