Waysted again
Formed back in 1983 by UFO bassist Pete Way and Scot Finn Muir, Waysted are one of those bands that haven’t really done that much but have kept going sporadically over much of the last 30 odd years. Not surprisingly line up changes have been frequent but Way and Muir are still in post and they get a really good crowd for the 2nd stage.
Pete Way arrives on stage with the worst hair cut of the weekend (& that’s saying something here!) and a Spice Girls tshirt. Muir is clad in a white jacket and as he seldom stops smiling reminds me of comedian Duncan Norville! As for the songs well initially I’m thinking that they sound as dated as Muir’s jacket looks, the older songs really haven’t aged that well. This is the one place however where none of that matters, most of the crowd were around when Waysted formed and greet every song with loud cheers. He might look a little like a club singer these days but there’s no denying that Muir still has the voice and his performance is strong throughout.
Pete Way looks pumped up but as the set progresses it becomes clear that he’s just pissed, which is at times amusing as he cajoles his bandmates but at others a little embarrassing as he shuffles around the stage. He still gets described as a legend but there is nothing legendary about his playing these days, he’s an adequate bassist and nothing more, his bass lines are very simple with no flair or creativity behind them. Some of the songs are alright such as ‘Rollin’ but others like ‘Dead on Your Legs’ just plod along and most of the set is unremarkable. They do have fun up there however and the performance is entertaining, the finale to ‘Manuel’ in particular is great as it builds to a blistering crescendo. By comparison though ‘Keepin It Sweet’ is all a bit cabaret and it’s these moments that I remember more than the good stuff.