Charismatic, harmonious and accomplished.
This was quite a performance from the Proclaimers - and St George's Hall rose as one to show its appreciation at the conclusion of last night's Bradford gig.
Twin brothers Craig and Charlie Reid were perfectly in tune with one another and their audience as they performed a mixture of old favourites and new numbers, of folk-influenced reflective tunes and more upbeat rock-style anthems.
The clever way in which the Scottish siblings construct their songs is something you appreciate more during a live performance, subtly building up the layers to take the audience on a journey. At times, Craig and Charlie appear to be singing different parts of the song at the same time, quite deliberately, to create a multi-layered sound that is unmistakable. For parts of the song, they seem to pull in slightly different directions, almost singing over each other in a way that shouldn't work but just does, before uniting in perfect harmony for added impact.
A spine-tingling performance of one of their newer songs - The Streets of Edinburgh - evoked thoughts of the twins' home city, contrasting past and present, good and bad. You should always come away from a gig with at least one new song in your head that you want to listen to again and again - and this certainly ticked that box.
Equally, it's nice to arrive at a gig with a tune or two that you can't wait to hear live. Having spent many months in the States in my early 20s, enjoying the experience while missing home as I travelled around with fellow British soccer coaches, the Proclaimers' breakthrough hit 'Letter from America' became a rather poignant anthem of choice on long car journeys.
Several decades later, it was fantastic to hear this magnificent song performed here in Bradford with such passion, energy and style, helped by the great acoustics of St George's Hall.
It was greeted by one of the biggest cheers of the night, with the sizeable crowd showing similar adulation towards classics such as 'Sunshine on Leith' and 'Let's Get Married'.
Formed in 1983, the Proclaimers are experienced enough to judge their audience perfectly. In their time, they've had tens of thousands of people bouncing up and down at Edinburgh's Murrayfield stadium.
With a more reserved yet equally appreciative set of onlookers, the band were happy to let the Bradford audience enjoy 85 per cent of the show from the comfort of their chairs, before beckoning them to their feet as the night built towards a crescendo.
As the Brothers Reid moved up the gears, the concluding sequence of songs included (can you believe I've got so far into a Proclaimers review without mentioning it?) the ever-popular 'I'm Gonna Be (500 miles)'.
This feel-good anthem - performed with great gusto - had people dancing, clapping and singing along.
As we left the grand surroundings of the recently-renovated venue, there seemed to be plenty of smiling faces and no shortage of positive comments.
A combination of great live performances and an impressive latest album mean the Proclaimers have plenty more miles left in them!
The fans are clearly voting with their feet too. As you look down the list of upcoming dates on their 'Dentures Out' tour of the UK and Ireland, the message 'Sold Out' is a recurring theme.
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