Skinny Lister’s visit to Rescue Rooms felt less like a traditional gig, and more like a recital of shanties upon a particularly rowdy pirate ship...
The five-piece brought their folk-punk to the masses, who were more than happy to receive it with adulation. Right from the outset, the band were in energetic form, with husband-and-wife duo Dan Heptinstall and Lorna Thomas leading the crowd in the anthemic ‘woah’s of opening track Wanted.
They were flanked by melodeonist Max Thomas, whose impressive skill was matched only by his manic enthusiasm, and double bassist Scott Milsom, whose party trick of playing the large instrument above his head was always met with fervent applause.
All the while, drummer Tom Hilsden held the performance together masterfully, setting up a night of hand claps, singalongs, and invariably, tunes about drinking.
Right from the outset, the band were in energetic form
Not satisfied by just reeling off the songs for the audience, Skinny Lister seeked to involve the crowd in any way possible. Indeed, Lorna disappeared into the crowd for the entirety of Geordie Lad, only re-emerging on the shoulders of a crowd member.
In their new song, Company of the Bar, the band elected to bring the bar to the stage, as drinks were handed out from the band to the crowd, who encouraged the drinks to make it as far to the back of the room as possible. Impressively, one drink managed to make it all the way to the merchandise stand.
Although the band themselves were wildly popular amongst the audience, who sang back almost every word to them, the unexpected star of the night was Lorna and Max’s father. George Thomas, introduced to the crowd as Party George, has been a songwriter on a number of Skinny Lister’s albums, and was brought onto the stage to perform William Harker, one of his songs.
In their new song, Company of the Bar, the band elected to bring the bar to the stage, as drinks were handed out from the band to the crowd
His energy matched, and at times even surpassed, his fellow bandmates, as he delighted the crowd with the lively number. Long after he had departed the stage, chants of his name echoed around the venue.
The crowd were treated to a number of new songs from five-piece’s as yet unannounced sixth album. Alongside the aforementioned Company of the Bar, the highlight of these had to be Arm Wrestling in Dresden, a characteristically lively song about getting too drunk in the German city and challenging the strongest man in the bar to an arm-wrestling contest.
This was significant, not only for the reassurance that Skinny Lister’s spirited nature would be continuing long into the 2020s, but also because it is a return to a particularly niche theme in their music: getting too drunk in German cities.
His energy matched, and at times even surpassed, his fellow bandmates
The pace of the evening was briefly brought down as the band regaled the audience with Bonny Away, a lullaby for their daughter. If she could hear her parents from the stage, however, she would’ve been very quickly reawakened by the foot stomping of This Is War and the chants of Trouble on Oxford Street, which closed out the main set.
The band wouldn’t be kept away for long though, as they returned to bring us the second German drinking story Hamburg Drunk, before inviting Party George, and the support acts, Deux Furieuses and Tom Jenkins, onto the stage to sing the closer, Six Whiskies.
Seeing the stage so full of friends and family singing along together, as well as every arm in Rescue Rooms waving in unison, really hammered home what Skinny Lister are all about. They are not simply a band, but a community, and in their live shows, they bring this community together to celebrate the joy of singing, and indeed drinking, together.
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