Tindersticks set to treat North-East fans to a new experience

One of the UK's most enduring cult acts are heading to Tyneside next week for a special performance of their new album.
Tinderstick play at The Sage Gateshead on Wednesday.Tinderstick play at The Sage Gateshead on Wednesday.
Tinderstick play at The Sage Gateshead on Wednesday.

Revered Nottingham outfit Tindersticks play The Sage Gateshead on Wednesday 4 May, in a show which will largely centre on their typically acclaimed latest, The Waiting Room.

It’s the latest chapter in a career that’s operated entirely under the radar, acquiring pockets of converts at every turn and in doing so helped define the so-called “slowcore” genre.

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Led by Stuart A. Staples, the outfit came together in 1991, following the dissolution of forebears Asphalt Ribbons.

Dank yet experimental, they instantly stood apart from contemporaries, offering a unique take on chamber pop which balanced romantic elegance with murk and claustrophobia.

Critics, needless to say, were on board from the start, with Melody Maker proclaiming their self-titled debut its Album of the Year in 1993.

And that acclaim has scarcely let up, with the two decades since defined by rave reviews, modest sales and a fanatical underground following.

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This was the case once more in January when Staples and company unveiled The Waiting Room, their 11th full-length to date and a more than worthy addition to their canon.

The Sage date will allow fans to experience the record in an entirely new light, with each of its songs set to be aired to the backdrop of a specially-commissioned film.

The project has been produced by La Blogotheque, and features work from directors based everywhere from the UK and France to Germany and Brazil.

Its fruits were premiered in February at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival, confirming – as with their numerous past soundtracks – that Tindersticks’ music is ideally suited for cinematic purposes.

It all promises evening of evocative, overcast beauty, from a group whose artful performances show no sign of dimming.