Hatton Manor / Tiago Saga / Jack Williams [Live Review – The Gods, Brighton, 17/10/2015]

Sometimes small gigs are the best gigs. With so many massive chain venues and mammoth festival fields out there, it’s easy to forget the joys of being packed sardine-like into a none-more-intimate room to enjoy an evening of top-class music.
Watching Jack Williams (83%) and Tiago Saga (85%), I was reminded of a recent interview with Jon Gomm, discussing the importance of authentic sincerity in the singer-songwriter world. These guys have authentic sincerity oozing from every pore, along with two distinct and enjoyable styles. Jack Williams is capable of projecting deep passions through borrowed equipment, while Tiago Saga’s versatile skills drift seamlessly through everything from late-evening crooning to countrified street-urchin poetry, cathartic outcries, and a light smattering of reggae.
Both are acts worth seeing.
I’ve previously described Hatton Manor (95%) as a flat-out superior acoustic duo – and I still stand by those words. Turned into a trio for their EP launch with the addition of Dorje / Toska drummer Ben Minal, Hatton Manor sounded absolutely epic. Running through a set list including three cuts from their new EP Eden (Mountain Man, A Place Beyond, and Through The Dust); a brilliant cover of Red Hot Chili Peppers classic Can’t Stop; unreleased future favourites Sigh, Horses, High Ceilings, and The Bug; and even a tasty and tasteful drum solo, these guys barely broke a sweat despite all manner of subtle complexities that could easily throw off lesser musicians.
Great musicianship, stellar songs, idiosyncratic creativity, buckets of charm and personality…there’s nothing not to love about Hatton Manor. They’re bloody ace.
Links
For more about Hatton Manor’s new EP Eden, check out TMMP’s review here.
Hatton Manor official website.
Tiago Saga on Facebook and Twitter.
Jack Williams on Facebook and Twitter.
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