Call Upon The Author

It’s a Thursday night in the O2 Academy Oxford and the atmosphere is electric as the crowd eagerly anticipates Alabama 3 taking the stage. When they do the audience is right there with them through the opening salvo of I Blame Kurt Cobain and Up Above My Head and stays with them to the encore of Let’s Go Out and Too Sick.
It’s rare to see an 8 piece band that isn’t just a ska band, but Alabama 3 pull it off with aplomb drawing influence from what seems to be Blues, Funk and even Dubstep, but it’s not until the introduction of Rev D Wayne Love that the audience is addressed and invited along for the ride leading into a mass audience singalong of Mansion on the Hill. It’s at this point that you realise what a feel good band this is who would go down a storm at pretty much any festival you can think of. If I have any criticism at all it’s that all the audience interaction is handled by the Rev, but I felt he was the member of the band with the least stage presence – maybe it’s just me, maybe I just don’t get it, but I couldn’t work out if his mumbling overdrawn monologues were carefully scripted intros or ramblings the band can only put a stop to by playing the next song.
To credit the band, it shows how strong the set is when they can play their arguably most recognisable track, Woke Up This Morning aka “The Theme Tune To The Sopranos” in the middle of the gig and the 2 singers, Larry Love and Aurora Dawn, managed to work the crowd throughout and made it very difficult to turn your attention elsewhere on the stage.
Alabama 3 should be a hell of a lot bigger than they actually are, but as long as they keep putting on that level of performance they will continue to be a band worth having your drink spilt for. Just not by someone who’s dancing like your dad.

Follow the band on Twitter @TheAlabama3 and check out all sorts of pics and songs at www.alabama3.co.uk but for now, see you in the crowd.