Dan Croll - Ruby Lounge Manchester 19/3/14
The boy from Liverpool via Stafford has literally come from nowhere to
becoming one of the hottest properties around. Moving to Liverpool at a young
age to study at LIPA led to a chance meeting with one Paul McCartney and said
single was at the top of blog chart Hype Machine for 3 weeks and Croll received
more airplay on radio and even got added on the prestigious ‘ a new band a
day’. After cutting his teeth, supporting Bastille and Imagine Dragons, Dan was
now ready to be thrust into the limelight.
After wowing the crowds at SxSW in Austin last year, Croll is now doing
a whistle-stop tour of the UK along with support band Racing Glaciers.
Local band ‘ Racing Glaciers’ are up first with their keyboard led sort
of Coldplay lite brand of emotive pop which seems primed for larger arenas.
This works well for the young crowd as it seems they can’t get enough of their
frat boy looks but still just remains inoffensive music for the rest of the
crowd.
Dan Croll and band enter the stage with ‘Hello My Baby’ which sounds
like a lost Lady Black Mambazo song. Its rhythm sets the tone for the evening.
Launching into the kaleidoscopic pop of ‘Thinkin bout chu’ with its cooing
backing vocals sends the girls at the front wild having the same effect. It
soon becomes clear why he has a young appeal with his loved up lyrics.
The falsetto of ‘wanna know’ brings the first sing along from the crowd.
The dancey In/Out gets the crowd shuffling their feet. It’s crazy that he has
just released his debut and every song sounds so familiar. ‘Compliment your
soul’ is the next major sing along with its lolloping melody, brass parps and
close harmonies - it still sounds as fresh as ever.
A mention for his ace band here with Dave Kelly’s rhythmic drumming ably
accompanied by the tight riffs of Jethro, John and Jacob who somehow becomes
easy fodder for the crowd. Occasionally the music veers close to Vampire
Weekend and there is an obvious Paul Simon influence. However Dan has the
likeability and variety in his arsenal with none of the complexities of Vampire
Weekend which with his complete focus on the melody and songwriting is a
winning combination. There is a variety of styles on show here especially with
the switch from soul to pop to afrobeat but it’s all perfectly arranged so it
doesn't seem to make a difference to the crowd.
With a mention of his Mum and his creased shirt you can tell that despite
all this newfound fame Dan is still grounded. This is so rare in an artist
nowadays and all to his credit and he genuinely looks astounded at his
popularity.
