Cards on the table. I approached this gig with some concern. The only Space song I recalled from the 90's was ' Female of the Species' which I'd never liked purely because of the way in which vocalist Tommy Scott delivers the "is more deadly than the male" part of the lyric; for some reason it's always grated on me. My problem with Republica was that I only recalled 'Ready To Go' and whilst I liked it, I also thought it had been played to death and so I wasn't eager to hear it again. I also had a bit of an issue with the pairing of what seemed to me two very different bands. Would it work?
The O2 Academy (2) was a good venue for the gig. By the time Space took to the stage it was nicely full and a jovial party atmosphere existed amongst the predominantly 30-50 year old and slightly merry crowd.
From the opening song I realised I'd misjudged Space. Their performance was very credible and confident. Not at all 'revivalist' in feel. New songs blended well with old favourites and whilst I still can't fully appreciate 'FOTS' I did recall and enjoy others that had slipped from my mind including 'Neighbourhood', 'Avenging Angels', 'Me & You Vs The World' and of course (how COULD I have forgotten) 'The Ballad of Tom Jones' complete with projected Cerys Matthews looking and sounding very good indeed. Of the new material 'She's in Love With the Boy in the Bodybag' stood out for me. Quirky and entertaining in a good way.
In the short time it took for co-headliners Republica to take the stage a few of the Space fans had departed leaving me to conclude that maybe others had shared my misgivings regarding this rather odd amalgamation.
The band's opening song was good and had my feet tapping but around 4 songs in it all started to sound a little 'samey.' Also it occurred to me that lead singer Saffron seemed a little nervous, waving to the front row like they were long lost friends who might be relied upon to return a confidence boosting smile. Thankfully, as the set continued confidence seemed to grow and by the time the song everyone had waited for ('Ready To Go') arrived the band had truly hit their straps.
I left feeling that perhaps I'd be better off suspending judgement next time. Whilst the billing of these two bands together didn't quite work I'd had a very enjoyable night and left with a renewed interest in Space's back catalogue.
Words: Russell Poad
Photo: Mike Noble
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