Miles Hunt, front man of The Wonder Stuff played a special seated acoustic set at Papillon in Southampton. Billed as performing songs from his solo album ‘Things Can Change’ along with many classics from his 36 year career.
It was so much more than that. One of the biggest problems I’m sure for any artist with a back catalogue that good is choosing what to play? It was curated perfectly. Starting off with ‘Manna from Heaven’ from the solo album ‘Hairy on the Inside’, in his own words “not wanting to be a Wonder Stuff jukebox”, but that soon came. Other solo tracks included ‘Immortalising Chase’, ‘Someone Like the Kingbird’ and ‘And She Gives (For Laney)’.
An hour and a half mix of solo and Wonder Stuff fan favourites, those included ‘Circle Square’, ‘Caught in My Shadow’, ‘Don’t Let Me Down, Gently’, ‘Room 512, All the News That’s Fit to Print’, finishing off the non-encore with ‘Give, Give, Give Me More, More, More’.
There was an encore as such, Miles just announced it was starting without leaving his seat rather than the as he said, the unnecessary hiding behind the curtain part when everyone knows there’s a few more songs to be heard.
Gigs like this sometimes offer more as they are intimate, they are as much an audience with style of nights. The songs were stripped down and all came with a story, and what a great storyteller he is, painting vivid accounts of people times and places. From day drinking in New York and waking in strange apartments to interesting buskers and situations that inspired songs along the way.
Miles Hunt is a songwriter, a modern poet, a minstrel, a troubadour.
@we.will.trampoline Caught in My Shadow – Miles Hunt from the Wonderstuff at Pappilon in Southampton #acoustic #livemusic #wonderstuff #mileshunt #pappilon ♬ original sound – We Will Trampoline
@we.will.trampoline Fantastic alternative version inspired by Wayne Hussay of On The Ropes, one of my favourite tracks of all time – Miles Hunt from the Wonderstuff at Pappilon in Southampton #acoustic #livemusic #wonderstuff #mileshunt #pappilon ♬ original sound – We Will Trampoline
Support came from Billy Liberator, a man and his guitar with a good selection of original songs and a good choice to precede the main show.
It was a great night as expected having seen him play solo and with The Wonder Stuff, and having met him before in conversation, not my finest moment but that’s another story, lets just say he could have done with Bob Dylan’s security team. If you ever get the chance to see this type of show or The Wonder Stuff live, do, you won’t be disappointed.
