Live Review

Therapy? – Kentish Town Forum

• 21st Nov 2010

20 whole years Therapy have been with us, and what better way to celebrate that than listening to them play the entirety of the Troublegum album.

Earlier this year the Sonisphere team for Glasswerk were lucky enough to witness this set as therapy played the album at the site’s Bohemia tent. The tent was so over packed that half the team were stuck outside listening in the cold. Tonight at the Kentish Town Forum there is a very over packed feel, and whilst there are always clowns and rude people pushing people out of their way and generally just being a pest, the crowd as a whole are fairly unified for their love for this band.

A hand and clap display early on is evidence of this – these people are all here for Therapy. There is no one here with little clue of who the band are. And almost every song on the Troublegum set gets a warm response, yes even that one the lead thought he might screw up as he rarely plays it!

The odd thing is that the album set is over pretty quickly! The band get through it with very little messing around. So it’s almost a shock, yet a comfort, that the set went down so smoothly. If there is any nag to make it is the fact that the band needed to get people clapping on almost every song they played. Ok boys, we are celebrating 20 years, but spread it out a bit. Let’s not idolise each and every song and over-love your audience. It gets a bit tedious at times.

Sounds cruel to say such things – as they are obviously in the mood for celebrating and are truly happy to be playing still after 20 years with such an affectionate crowd. But even during their second set of favourites they continue to sugar coat it all with a little too much love.

The second set thankfully sees them paying tribute to Nurse which for many is the album that got them into Therapy in the first place. They also material from hit album Infernal Love and many other works from this very busy band indeed. It is a landmark time and was worth being there to register that fact – especially those of us that were in our college years when the band first became popular. Nostalgia is indeed in the air!

Andy Cairns sends us all off with a quick verse of “You Are My Sunshine,” and away they go. All in all the sound has been good – The Drumming isn’t quite as raw and tin sounding as it is on the Troublegum album. But we can’t have everything. What we have has is a thorough, and exciting double set from a band we hope will stay with us for the next 20 years.