When Sleeper reunited in 2017 to appear as special guests on the brief Star Shaped Festival tour, it was billed as being for four shows only. Eight years, two new albums and several dozen live shows later, they’re still with us, and tonight, Louise Wener and her band kick off their thirtieth anniversary tour in Margate.
Taking the stage in a near capacity Dreamland Ballroom, Louise looks radiant; guitarist Jon Stewart and Andy Maclure appear pleased to be appearing at a venue that’s somewhat more intimate than many the band have played in the past. Launching into ‘Smart’ album classic ‘Bedhead’, Sleeper immediately have the audience on their side. They attack the riffs with vigour and the sound is huge. Unfortunately – and as is often the case with Dreamland’s downstairs room – it isn’t particulary good. The drums and bass come through clearly, but Louise’s vocals sound thin; almost non-existent, only really poking above the wall of sound for the chorus. Despite this, the audience appears enthusiastic, and when sliding into ‘Nice Guy Eddie’, the momentum is kept, but further sound issues are evident. Louise is now coming through more clearly, but Jon’s guitar is all but absent. Regardless, the riffs still sound familiar, and although the performance seems somewhat…wobbly, it’s also well received.
The early part of the show brings the night’s biggest surprise when ‘Bedside Manners’ appears in the set for the first time since 1995, and for only the second time ever. Introduced as a companion piece to ‘Inbetweener’, its sharper edges are a perfect fit with the core of ‘Smart’ – and although relegated to b-side status, it’s superior to album cuts ‘Hunch’ and ‘Poor Flying Man’. Although the surprise appearance is more than welcome and Sleeper play the deep cut with real gusto, the iffy sound mix takes away some of its impact, with Louise sounding half buried again, before an (unintentionally) guitar free ‘Cellophane’ brings everything a little more up to date. As with the opener, the bass sound is great, but everything else is only intermittently clear. Meanwhile, in the crowd, a couple of very large men seem intent on blocking the view of anybody under 5’10 in the second and third rows. There are moments where an intrusive DKNY logo on some exposed underpants appears more visible than anything on stage, and underwear man’s mate takes on the gig equivalent of “manspreading”, blissfully unaware of his surroundings. He’ll continue to do this throughout the night.
A double whammy of ‘Smart’ tunes – ‘Pyrotechnician’ and ‘Delicious’ – provides an evening highlight, despite Jon’s guitar, high in the mix for these pop-punk infused numbers, drowning out most of Lou’s best efforts, before ‘What Do I Do Now?’ hits the audience like a truck – a bass and keyboard heavy performance removing any of the song’s subtleties. In keeping with the night, there’s the feeling of a reasonable amount of energy coming from the band, but the finer points of their performance get lost in an uneven swamp of sound.
It’s only at the halfway point that most of the sound issues are addressed, and ‘The Sun Also Rises’ presents one of the night’s stronger vocals and a band who, at least, now sound like they’re pulling in the same direction. Naturally, regardless of its status of being one of the best number’s from Sleeper’s second era, it doesn’t quite receive the rapturous response of some of the set’s previous tunes, despite sounding so much better. Another number from the excellent comback album – 2018’s ‘The Modern Age’ – slows the tempo momentarily, but the more spacious feel allows the vocal to be heard nice and clearly, before Sleeper bring out some genuine crowd pleasers.
‘Statuesque’ is a little muddy sounding, but thanks to a genuinely distinctive riff and Jon sharing a few of his best guitar sounds on this night, it’s easy to be swept along on the wave of excitement that very visibly fills the front of the crowd. Dipping back into ‘Modern Age’ material, ‘Look At You Now’ plays like a reunion era classic, before a medley of Blondie’s ‘Atomic’ and Joy Divison’s ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart’ (the latter, an unexpected diversion) gets pockets of the audience bouncing enthusiastically. Sleeper’s cover of the Blondie hit has been a fan favourite since its appearance on the ‘Trainspotting’ soundtrack and it went down a storm at the Star Shaped shows, but if anything, it’s received with even more love by this Saturday night seaside crowd. A case could certainly be made for this being the highlight of the whole night Finally, offering the only nod to 1997’s ‘Pleased To Meet You’, ‘She’s A Good Girl’ sounds great, but provides a slightly downbeat end to the main set. Although Sleeper clearly understand the importance of structuring the show for the best impact, often allowing the audience a little breathing space between the genuine bangers, this would’ve worked so much better before the covers medley. However, it’s a timely reminder of the strengths of Sleeper’s underrated third disc.
Keeping the audience on side, the night’s encore brings three cast iron classics. ‘Vegas’ sets a sombre mood when played in a new, stripped back way, but the melody remains strong, and it’s great to see keyboard player Aimee Smith (a member of My Life Story, and part of the Sleeper family since 2017) stepping to the front for a shared vocal. To close, a rousing ‘Inbetweener’ hits the crowd with a succession of choppy guitar work and a lyric that has the faithful fan base singing every word, and a really buoyant ‘Sale of The Century’ remains a great example of Sleeper’s 90s pomp, still rousing everyone three decades on.
This has been a far cry from Sleeper’s London show on the Star Shaped tour – where a lot of goodwill and some really high spirits crowned them as those event’s finest act – but there have been moments tonight that show off a band who can still hit the mark. Even with various sound issues, it’s clear that Louise, Jon and Andy still spark off each other when they’re on stage. It certainly couldn’t be called the perfect night out, but for those who’ve braved the biting coastal wind to be here, it’ll have still created a fun memory or three.
September 2025