Blog Post
Cats In Space + Matt Mitchell & The Coldhearts - Dover Booking Hall, Sunday 2nd October 2022
Laura DQ • 4 October 2022
Live Review
It’s a real shame that Matt Mitchell & The Coldhearts face such a sparsely populated Dover Booking Hall. The hypnotic heavy riffs and gravel-throated vocals deserve better but it’s pretty much impossible to create an atmosphere when there’s just so much empty space! It doesn’t stop Mitchell from trying; it takes confidence to try to engage in audience call and response when there’s not much audience but he pretty much pulls it off!
Cats In Space burst onto the stage with King of Stars; an uplifting slice of polished rock and the ideal introduction to the stacked harmonies and irresistible hooks that they do so well. A band from a bygone age, in the best possible way, they inject fun into a genre that is sometimes guilty of taking itself too seriously. You’ve probably heard the comparisons - ELO, Queen, Thin Lizzy - an amalgamation of all that’s great about British rock.
Recent singles Poke the Witch and Teenage Millionaires sound fantastic; pure pop rock perfection with huge singalong choruses. And of course, there’s plenty more of that to come. Mr Heartache is a glorious throwback to the sound of the 70s and Thunder in the Night the best disco rock song you’ve probably never heard.
Damien Edwards is an outstanding vocalist, theatrical in his delivery and just perfect for the Cats. It’s even more apparent when the bombast is stripped away and he is left to sing Hero accompanied by keyboard alone. Despite being the third person to front the band, it’s now hard to imagine anyone else being such a good fit.
There’s a wonderful flamboyance to the Cats, who make this look very easy. There’s an infectious energy throughout and trying to resist the exuberance of The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party or Timebomb is futile. Naturally, this music is very much out of step with anything modern or ‘cool’ but that’s what makes it so brilliant.
Greatest Story Never Told provides an epic finale. Bassist Jeff Brown shows he has quite a voice himself, handling the opening verse before the keyboards and harmonies send things soaring. Anyone who passed on this really missed out; yes, it’s a Sunday night but Cats In Space should be so much more than the best kept secret in rock.