Incubus + Far From Saints + Leilani live @
Eden Sessions, St Austell - 24/06/2023

I don't care who you are or where you're from, if you're willing to get up on a stage in front 1 or 100,000 people and perform songs you've written yourself then you'll have my respect. It takes guts and for opening act Leilani, it meant walking on to a stage (alone) to perform without any more backing than her "bleepy bloopy" box (her words) and a guitar. There was a distinct Bjork-ish energy about the performance which moved the crowd from bemused to confused and then on to enthralled in the space of half an hour which is all you can hope for when you're opening a big stage. A brave and creative soul, bravo.

For those that didn't know Far From Saints, there may have been a sense of "who is this lot?" but as soon as the voice of the lead singer came ringing out even a blind man would have been in no doubt. Kelly Jones of the Stereophonics has one of those instantly recognisable voices and this new venture for him and his comrades made the most of that talent. Alongside Patty Lynn and Dwight Baker of the Wind and the Wave, the Welshman brought us a set of countryfied Americana that was perfect for the sunset surroundings and warm glow of cider. Finishing off with a sing-along version of Tom Petty's 'American Girl' was a great crowd pleasing touch as well, getting everyone along for the ride and ready for the night's main event.

This was the final date of the European tour for Incubus, a tour that had been scuppered by lead singer Brandon Boyd's illness meaning that a number of shows had been cancelled but it always felt that this date would be one they were keen to fulfill. Bringing the Californian rockers to Cornwall for the first time to play in among the biomes and organic gardens of the Eden Project seemed like a match made in heaven and they five-piece seemed to revel in this home away from home. Opening with one of their more recent singles, 'Karma, Come Back', before moving in to live favourite 'Privilege' and the intense 'Anna Molly', it was a powerful opening trio of songs covering three different albums. Personal highlights were 'Glitterbomb' and oldie 'Vitamin' with the crowd lapping up tracks like 'The Warmth', 'Pardon Me' and 'Stellar' for big ol' sing-alongs. There were a few sprinkled surprises with 'Echo' morphing in to a jam of the Beatles classic 'Come Together', 'Are You In?' including a segue in to the Doors' 'Riders on the Storm' and 'Wish You Were Here' incorporating a respectful nod to Pink Floyd's song of the same name.

Brandon Boyd is still one of the most engaging and powerful frontmen around and even with the obvious cracks around the edges of his voice requiring some support from the crowd sometimes this was still a consummate performance. Given the fragility of those vocals they would have been forgiven an encore free performance but, well, they hadn't done 'Drive' so they came back to power through one more time before heading back to the states. I always thought it was a damn shame that Incubus didn't quite achieve the prominence of some of their contemporaries but after tonight I'm not so sure. Seeing them play under a setting sun in a repurposed quarry in Cornwall to a few thousand people felt special, it felt like it was just for us as a reward for seeking them out and sticking with them all these years. The only downside was that frequently occurring incident of people talking through gigs - two guys in front of me spent the first hour of the set chatting to each other and showing each other pictures of guitars on their phones. It baffles me, it really does, but hopefully one day they'll regret it and realise what they missed out on; a truly special night.

More information:

Eden Sessions - https://www.edensessions.com/

Incubus - https://www.facebook.com/Incubus

Far From Saints - https://www.facebook.com/farfromsaints

Leilani - https://www.instagram.com/veggieburgerr/?hl=en