The Kooks at the Forum

I knew this gig was sold out, but I wasn't anticipating the sight that greeted me at the Forum. I arrived 5 minutes before doors open to see a queue that snaked back two streets. I had assumed the popularity of the Kooks had wand somewhat, now on their fourth album. And I certainly wasn't expecting such a teenage audience. I was expecting mid to late Twenties, reflecting the point at which the Kooks arrived on the scene with "So Naive" led by the admittedly quite handsome Luke Pritchard. But clearly I was mistaken. The audience was very Made in Chelsea, teenagers greeting each other with cries of "Jemima!" and the like.

Fortunately the queue moved along relatively quickly and there was still room for me to take up my customary position at the front as first act Hidden Charms came on. They were pretty decent, even charming.

Second support came from a rather more accomplished and serious rock outfit called Vant. In fact I would suggest they take themselves rather too seriously in their rock performance on stage - just a bit too guitar hero. But not bad by any means.

The Kooks were in my opinion very good. I have seen them a few times over the years and this was their best performance, Maybe it snot so much that they are getting older (a bad thing) but becoming more mature (a good thing). Certainly they mined all their albums for a fine set, including all their old favourites - Ooh La, Seaside, She Movers in Her Own Way, and inevitably closed on So Naive. This is a band who far from being past their best have just hit their stride. I can see why they still have such a strong young fan base.