Nilbanter: Independent Reviews

A big thank you to you guys for your outstanding performance at KWVR Beer & Music Festival! Simply fantastic!

..the awesome Nilbanter.

If you go to a Nil Banter gig expecting a standard pub covers band, you’ll find yourself with a great deal more than that packed in to your night’s entertainment. Put a coin in this band’s colourful jukebox and you’ll stack up one brilliant, inspired or unusual cover version after another, interspersed with some superb original material, all expertly played and skilfully executed.

The set I heard at The Mitre, Knaresborough as part of FEVA, flowed effortlessly from exquisitely tight gorgeous three-part harmonies, (not something you experience very often in covers band world) of Crosby Stills and Nash songs (Marrakesh Express, Helplessly Hoping) and Lindisfarne’s ‘Lady Eleanor’, through Verve and Crowded House numbers, a bluegrass song - beautifully enhanced, as was a fair proportion of the set, by the incredible Wendy Ross guesting on electric violin, the like of which you probably won’t hear anywhere else - and easy on the ear songs like ‘Stuck in the Middle’, to the heavier end of things, such as a version of Every Rose has its Thorn (Poison), among many others. Standout songs for me were an absolutely blinding Comfortably Numb (Pink Floyd), with stunning electrifying guitarwork by the adaptable Peter McLoughlin, and their own song Thick as Thieves, which grooves along beautifully with nifty lyrics that sit coolly in that easy rhythm. All have excellent voices, and Mark Wilson can move from soothing husky Gerry Rafferty style tones to full-on Van Morrison gravelly belting with ease.

Versatility is the watchword for Nil Banter, not only in the songs they choose to cover and their outstanding musicianship, but to watch them swapping and changing instruments with each other through the evening only adds to their talent factor. They can provide the more standard covers fayre like Johnny Be Goode or Sweet Home Alabama, but expect to hear superior versions, and it’s exciting to know that there are plans to launch a new band too, which will feature exclusively their own material. A visit to the  website www.nilbanter.com will give you an idea of setlists, gig dates and more information on the band. Oh - and the ‘banter’ you hear between songs is anything but ‘nil’, because these guys are a likeable, warm affable bunch of people as well as top class musicians…go and see them soon. You’ll have a fantastic night.

They weren't only here for the beer Published Date: 22 August 2008 By Staff Copy Nilbanter Knaresborough House IT LOOKED like being an inauspicious start to Nilbanter's performance on Friday evening, due in no small part to the inclement weather and the fact that Friday evening's beer festival had proved so popular that the beer was running low. This is never an easy venue to play due to the fluidity of the audience and the movement of traffic in front of the stage. However, the boys were on top form producing some tight vocal harmonies during their opening number of Lindisfarne’s Lady Eleanor. Their renditions of Summer of ’69 showed off the vocals skill of Steve Peacey and the guitar solo by Pete McLoughlin was remarkable. This one proved to be a real crowd pleaser and had the audience up and dancing. More audience participation was required as Mark Wilson encouraged members of the audience to get up on stage and join in with the backing vocals to Steve Harley’s Come Up and See Me, Make Me Smile – surprisingly they were all girls! Best song of the night was Sweet Thing by Van Morrison. Mark Wilson took a good strong lead vocal capably backed up by Chris Holden on drums. Nilbanter have been performing together for over five years now. This shows in their tight three-part harmonies and their ability to swap their instruments with each other at will. Their broad repertoire means they hold a wide appeal to audiences of any age and many stayed to enjoy the performance. Nilbanter are mainly a 'cover band' but I know they have been working hard on some of their own material. A particularly strong song penned by Mark Wilson – Thick as Thieves – can be heard on the Nilbanter web site, Nilbanter.com Those who enjoyed Pete McLoughlin's stunning guitar work may be interested to know that Pete and his other band Redtrainblue will be playing at The World’s End on Saturday, August 16.

Sharon van Zelst

NILBANTER were on shining form when they opened their first set at The Yorkshire Lass on Saturday night. Cohesive and Sharp their delivery of The Galway Shawl, Come up and See Me Make Me Smile and Grave Digger were superlative. The tight vocal harmonies were exquisite and can only come from long hours of arduous rehearsal , these boys have put in their time. All members seemed relaxed and happy and willing to interact with the audience, in fact one member even threw in an impromptu Elvis impersonation. Willing to allow their audience to dictate the pace and choose the songs they ensured a fun filled and gay atmosphere. A band destined for great things, if you weren't there you were defiantly square!

Sharon Van Zelst 

 

Four very talented musicians who gave the audience a set of immaculate covers, including Summer of 69, Sweet Home Alabama and Brown-eyed Girl to name but a few. There are a great number of cover bands throughout the “live” music scene in West and North Yorkshire, very few, if any are as good as Nilbanter.

Paul Abraham - www.leedsmusicpromotions.com