Frank Turner

Tonight I head down to somewhere called Saltbox for the first time. I don’t even know the place existed and I find it lurking near the Ice Stadium. I don’t know what’s on at the Arena itself but there are loads of stalls selling feather boas and kiss me quick hats. Which is worrying. Although I’m sure it’s nothing to do with Frank Turner, which is why I’m here. A quick internet search tells me it’s the Clubland Arena Tour. So that’s cleared that one up... not.

Tonight it’s Frank Turner’s World Record Attempt. He’s doing 15 shows in 15 cities in 24 hours which will be a new Guinness World Record.

With Frank only due to play around 25 minutes it’s good that we’ve got a support act. George Gadd walks out shouting 'You pies!'. Yes he’s a local and clearly not from the red side of the city. It’s also immediately apparent that he’s a wannabe Frank Turner but he’s very confident with it. He's also pretty good and chatty with it. He tells us he used to be in an Emo band and has been to B&Q today!

He plays us some tracks from his forthcoming début album that he says has been 42 years in the making since he was aged two. It includes a ballad about his dog Leo who he lost during Covid and couldn’t say goodbye to due to restrictions. He also covers Frightened Rabbit’s ‘Swim Until You Can’t See Land’. 

He goes down well and George seems slightly overwhelmed with it all. At half an hour our support act has played longer than the headliner is schedule to do. I don’t think that usually happens.

Saltbox is a nice venue albeit with a small stage and although bigger in actual size to the Rescue Rooms it's probably got about the same 400 or so capacity, due to its layout.

Frank is due on a 9pm and his kit e.g. guitar, pedals etc arrive from Chesterfield at 8:45. So it looks like we’re on schedule. It must be hard lugging stuff into a different places unless you’ve cased the joints first but then perhaps they have.

Bang on time Frank Turner takes the stage wearing a T-shirt with the slogan ‘Whose stupid idea was this anyway?’ and welcomes us along to gig six of his mid-life crisis. 

The eight song set draws mainly from his new album ‘Undefeated’ which I get handed a copy of when I enter the venue. The gig plus the CD for only £18.50 and in aid of the Music Venue Trust. So I order a T-Shirt as well.

Alongside the new material he slots in a couple of classics in the shape of ‘The Ballad of Me and My Friends’ and ‘Get Better’. Both of which induce a mass crowd singalong.

Then after a finale of another newbie ‘Do One’ where the chorus appropriately goes ‘I’m still standing up’ he leaves for his next appointment in Birmingham in only an hour’s time.

Of course he went on to achieve his aim in Southampton the next day and now he’s a World Record holder as well as having raised some money for the Music Venue Trust while being the complete legend that he is.