There was a time when the only lyrics heard from the mouths of young female songstresses were those of love, devotion and despair, 'My Heart Will Go On' crooned Celine as Kate and Leo frolicked ominously on an oversized, speeding cruise liner; 'I Will Always Love You' Whitney bellowed, although it soon became pretty clear she was talking about her crack addiction and not her adulterous husband. Looking back none of them really got it quite right did they?
Thankfully the Noughties proved to be a time when girls stopped mooning over the despair bought on by the opposite sex and started dishing out tirades against them instead. The most recent being the lovely Kate Nash, who proves with lyrics such as "what you being a dickhead for" and "darling don't give me shit cos I know that your full of it" that it is still possible to pull off a rousing London show suitable for all the family. Which is exactly where I find myself on Monday evening; armpit high in tweenagers watching the delightful Miss Nash sing herself into a frenzy.
I arrive at Hammersmith Apollo at precisely 7:30pm to satisfy the punctuality of the overexcited 14 year olds I am chaperoning. The place is already filled to the rafters with every self-respecting, alternative wannabe from a 50 mile radius. The crowd are going beserk in that naïve, this-is-my-first-concert sort of way to The Black Kids, a Florida Five piece who perform with a charisma that belies their inexperience. Their music can only be compared to what the Go Team's little sister would sound like; shouty, indie yet endearingly catchy pop.
With such a hard act to follow, Kate's entrance on to the stage has to really pack a punch and it is fair to say that the girl does good. Although nerves are apparent as she takes the keyboard to pump out opening number 'Pumpkin Soup' her vocals are pitch perfect and sung with such conviction and vigour that the fact that she struggles a little to keep up with the tempo doesn't matter at all.
Interweaving some new ditties, ostensibly derived from seventies folk/rock but retaining a suitable Nash like quality, with well known favourites from the current album, it soon becomes obvious that Kate is not going to be the one trick pony critics quickly wrote her off as. This was illustrated further by her frenetic performance of 'You Don't Have To Suck Dick To Succeed' a shouty, punk number that although rather risqué for the younger audience members, reveals an energy few have seen Kate demonstrate in the past.
The highlight of the night comes in the shape of the encore when The Black Kids join Kate on stage for a rendition of 'Im Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You'. This sees Kate hammering on the keyboard with such conviction it's almost a shame it has to end, although the crowd were not left hanging as the intro for 'Merry Happy' soon begins filtering through the sound system. As Kate croons her way through lyrics such as "Cos you can grow flowers from where dirt used be" like a modern day Hemingway and random white confetti billows from the ceiling we can’t help but feel very merry happy indeed.
Thankfully the Noughties proved to be a time when girls stopped mooning over the despair bought on by the opposite sex and started dishing out tirades against them instead. The most recent being the lovely Kate Nash, who proves with lyrics such as "what you being a dickhead for" and "darling don't give me shit cos I know that your full of it" that it is still possible to pull off a rousing London show suitable for all the family. Which is exactly where I find myself on Monday evening; armpit high in tweenagers watching the delightful Miss Nash sing herself into a frenzy.
I arrive at Hammersmith Apollo at precisely 7:30pm to satisfy the punctuality of the overexcited 14 year olds I am chaperoning. The place is already filled to the rafters with every self-respecting, alternative wannabe from a 50 mile radius. The crowd are going beserk in that naïve, this-is-my-first-concert sort of way to The Black Kids, a Florida Five piece who perform with a charisma that belies their inexperience. Their music can only be compared to what the Go Team's little sister would sound like; shouty, indie yet endearingly catchy pop.
With such a hard act to follow, Kate's entrance on to the stage has to really pack a punch and it is fair to say that the girl does good. Although nerves are apparent as she takes the keyboard to pump out opening number 'Pumpkin Soup' her vocals are pitch perfect and sung with such conviction and vigour that the fact that she struggles a little to keep up with the tempo doesn't matter at all.
Interweaving some new ditties, ostensibly derived from seventies folk/rock but retaining a suitable Nash like quality, with well known favourites from the current album, it soon becomes obvious that Kate is not going to be the one trick pony critics quickly wrote her off as. This was illustrated further by her frenetic performance of 'You Don't Have To Suck Dick To Succeed' a shouty, punk number that although rather risqué for the younger audience members, reveals an energy few have seen Kate demonstrate in the past.
The highlight of the night comes in the shape of the encore when The Black Kids join Kate on stage for a rendition of 'Im Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You'. This sees Kate hammering on the keyboard with such conviction it's almost a shame it has to end, although the crowd were not left hanging as the intro for 'Merry Happy' soon begins filtering through the sound system. As Kate croons her way through lyrics such as "Cos you can grow flowers from where dirt used be" like a modern day Hemingway and random white confetti billows from the ceiling we can’t help but feel very merry happy indeed.
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