Amid a credit-crunch and in an era when the music industry is haemorrhaging money, musicians are increasingly having to tighten their belts and go a bit DIY. Not a problem for Eastbourne troubadour David Ford who, with the help of some power-tools and a bit of elbow grease, built his own band for his latest, self-funded tour of the UK. Equally at home playing with just a guitar for company or filling a festival stage with a 14-piece ensemble, this time Ford supplemented a vocal and guitar/piano by utilising his trusty loop pedal and an ingenious remote control drum-kit. Not a drum machine. An actual drum kit, with sticks and everything. It played itself in the corner while Ford controlled it from centre-front.In keeping with the unusual stage set-up, the evening took on a different dynamic too, with no support act but instead two intimate sets from Ford split by an interval. The old songs were as welcomingly familiar as a pair of comfy trousers. Of them, the vitriolic State of the Union was still as mind-blowing as ever, as Ford slowly and deliberately laid loop atop loop. Song For The Road was sweet, and there was even a surprise nod to his past, as he played a stripped-down version of old Easyworld favourite, Demons.
The two hour set was littered by new, unreleased tracks too and it was these, most notably the beautiful To Hell With The World, that stood out and certainly whetted the appetite for the release of some new material later this year.
