Wet Wet Wet are bringing their intimate acoustic tour to Ilkley on Tuesday 26 May, choosing the King's Hall, as it, like the majority of venues on the tour, are located in places that they’ve never played before during their 40+ year careers.
As well as a brand-new album that sees them revisit their songs in a stripped back style, ‘An Intimate Acoustic Evening with Wet Wet Wet’ will see founding member Graeme Clark, long-standing guitarist Graeme Duffin, and lead singer Kevin Simm, who joined the band in 2018, perform a full set of reworked Wet Wet Wet classics, with the odd story and anecdote from the band’s history thrown in for good measure.
The idea for the album and for taking this new show on the road has developed from the band’s recent run of hugely successful full band tours, which have seen them perform to over 75,000 people at their headline shows alone during the last couple of years, plus countless more at festivals around the world. Every night, the trio perform a short set of 3 songs acoustically, in what has become a fan-favourite highlight of their live show.
Bassist Graeme Clark said:
“We love nothing more than performing our songs live, so to have the chance of presenting them in a slightly different way is very inspiring. By showcasing our best-known songs acoustically in these intimate surroundings, it’ll let us strip them down to their bones and reimagine them. This personal look into our beloved music catalogue will give the audience a real insight into their favourite songs in a unique way that we’ve never been able to do before.”
Guitarist Graeme Duffin said:
“Having dipped our toes back into the waters of stripped-down acoustic performance on the recent tour, which went down incredibly well, it seemed like a natural progression to extend the set, take it on the road and visit some new places. The songs take on a very different character acoustically, presenting a unique opportunity to engage with the audience on a more personal level. When the music is much more exposed, there are far less places to hide!”
Lead singer Kevin Simm added:
“I’m really excited to be going out on this acoustic tour with Graeme and Graeme, performing these great songs in an intimate atmosphere which will be something different for us and also fans of the band. It’s been a lot of fun recording the songs in a stripped back style and I can’t wait to perform them live that way too. We’ll be playing the hits of course, but in a way that people won’t get the chance to see too often.”
This stripped back approach re-works songs from throughout the legendary group’s back catalogue and has inspired a brand-new studio album which has been released on CD and limited-edition coloured vinyl to coincide with the tour.
The ‘Strings Attached’ album contains reimagined versions of Wet Wet Wet’s biggest songs, plus a cover of Fleetwood Mac’s The Chain which has become a live favourite. The songs have been rearranged and recorded in an acoustic style for the release using a plethora of instrumentation including guitar, bass, drums, double bass, accordion, mandolin, tambourine etc. along with a string section on certain tracks.
This special acoustic tour will offer fans a chance to see and hear the trio play Wet Wet Wet’s most iconic songs – including Sweet Little Mystery, Angel Eyes, Temptation, Sweet Surrender, and the legendary Love Is All Around – in an intimate setting, as they’ve never been performed before.
Wet Wet Wet have sold over 15 million records worldwide, with 20× platinum certifications, and incredibly have achieved over 500 weeks spent on the UK Singles and Albums Charts. They continue to be one of the UK’s most successful and best-loved bands, with a catalogue of defining hits such as Sweet Little Mystery, Angel Eyes, Goodnight Girl, With a Little Help from My Friends, Sweet Surrender, Julia Says and of course, the ubiquitous Love Is All Around which spent the entire summer of 1994 at No.1.
Tickets are available via the Bradford Theatres website or box office 01274 432000.
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