Two years ago, Witness were rightly being heaped with elegant praise for the storming debut album 'Before The Calm'. Positioning themselves in an acutely atmospheric, emotionally detached middle-ground between Radiohead and The Verve, it seems incredible that the band now find themselves supporting ego-maniac upstart Ed Harcourt.
However, they are, and in their relatively brief set, Witness give forewarning of what could have been, if their studied, soulful melancholic swathes of guitar music had been embraced with as much love as they clearly infuse into their own work.
Tracks such as 'Here's One For You', 'You Are All My Own Invention' and 'Under A Sun', from the rather more commercial and 'up' new album of the same name, come replete with sweeping chords and choruses, exaggerating the dramatic scale of their transformation over the two records.
However, it is the lovelorn tremors of 'Still', a stripped-back 'Hijacker', driven onwards by vocalist Gerard McKie's glorious, bruised baritone, and a menacingly taut and droning 'Too Far Gone' - all from the debut album - that reach for the magic of horizons not quite reached. Of course, there is still time.
Meanwhile, one can only conclude that Ed Harcourt is an arrogant git. "This is quite a lot of people for me," he says, surveying tonight's full house, "but I think I'm worth it." Yep, the winner of tonight's smug mug award goes to... the Mercury nominated 24-year-old at the piano.
Harcourt does have grounds for his, shall we say, confidence. This year's 'Here Be Monsters' album - his first proper work, not counting six track mini effort 'Maplewood' - was much lauded and saw the singer/songwriter performing at last week's Mercury Music Prize ceremony. "It was badly filmed" says Harcourt later, "but I'm glad PJ Harvey won." Magnanimous gesture sir.
From opening track 'She Fell Into My Arms' - a jaunty Ben Folds style number - Harcourt has the quietly polite crowd on his side. His crafted tunes, performed with a talented outfit, including trumpet, double bass and strings, are an intimate, mature mix of light and shade, intensity and gentleness.
Nowt very new granted, but if Coldplay and Starsailor can do it, there's no reason why the charming Mr Harcourt can't get his slice of adult, folksome, poppy action.
Flitting from piano to guitar to banjo and back again, Harcourt delivers dryly ironic asides like "I like to consider myself a bonafide rockstar now" with the appearance of having tongue in cheek while still actually believing what he says. Still, better this surely than Chris Martin's humble, 'nice', boy-next-door 'Thank you's'.
Recalling the like of Tom Waits, Eric Matthews, Mercury Rev, the aforementioned Folds and Nick Drake, Harcourt plunders most of 'Here Be Monsters' tonight. The awesome, jazzy beauty of 'Those Crimson Tears' comes close to matching the gorgeousness of Robert Wyatt's 'Shipbuilding', the delicate reflection of 'Birds Fly Backwards' brings to mind Neil Finn and new single 'Apple Of My Eye' is an uplifting brassy stomp.
Tonight's centrepiece though, as it is on the album, is 'Beneath The Heart Of Darkness', an epic, ambitious tune which ebbs and flows from fragile 'classical' piano interludes to thrashing bass-heavy frenzy, the trumpeter holding a wireless up to his microphone to provide ominous interference noises.
Hell, even the naff 80's Elton-esque novelty of 'Shanghai' sounds good in the flesh tonight in a set which oozes charisma and obvious ability but which seems to lack real passion in its delivery. Perhaps Mr Harcourt feels that he's already too good for these smaller venues. If so, he could well be right. Lord knows he's got the front to get him to where he wants to go.
