Levellers Collective – Live At The Hackney Empire – Review

Label: On The Fiddle

Genre: Folk Rock

Released: March 7th 2025

Track Listing:

1. Carry Me

2. The Game

3. The Lowlands Of Holland

4. Liberty Song

5. Battle Of The Beanfield

6. Wheels

7. Drug Bust McGee

8. Together All The Way

9. Sitting In The Social

10. Man O’ War

11. Julie

12. Ghosts In The Water

13. Born That Way

14. Haven’t Made It

15. England My Home

16. The Cholera Well

17. The Boatman

18. The Road

19. Far From Home

20. Hope Street

21. Down By The River ‘O

22. Just The One

The Levellers have paid their dues and earned their place on the platform of the elegant Hackney Empire, as this “Collective / Live” recording from May 2023 demonstrates perfectly. Over the years, their stagecraft has been honed as a respected live act, adapting their performance to suit the show in hand, whether headlining their own concerts, entertaining festival crowds or bringing their music to more unusual locations: having personally seen them play in two different cathedrals and on the outskirts of a Neolithic stone circle in Wiltshire, I can vouch for their ability to win an audience over in whatever way they see fit. Their ‘Collective’ venture allows them to focus on the strengths of their expansive back catalogue, stripping well known classics down to the bare instrumental bones and bringing in new experimental arrangements through a bolstered line-up of talented musicians in readiness for them hitting the road on a new 2025 acoustic tour.

The haunting female vocals of “Carry Me” welcomes the band onto the stage and the tension is palpable as they open with “The Game”, the ominous drumbeat carrying the song in with a measured restraint before Mark Chadwick warmly welcomes the crowd for joining them. “Liberty Song” can be a raucous call to arms in their usual shows but strains at the seams in this setting, demonstrating that rebellion can be simultaneously beautiful yet angry. As the set builds, the impact and power of each song grows, with different instruments granted the opportunity to take centre stage and the band clearly growing more relaxed and confident in each other’s company. Their desire to bring awareness to societal injustices across the years are front and centre throughout the set, with songs such as “Battle of The Beanfield” and “Drug Bust McGee” more potent than ever for the persuasive voice ringing out across a gracefully warm folk-punk concerto.

As the album continues towards its conclusion, the tension between the structured harmonies, delicate string arrangements and precise percussion strains playfully against the clear desire for the band to let loose in their own inimitable style. “England My Home” crackles with anticipation and passion, before finishing with a poignant violin refrain over a delicately graceful vocal. Excited whoops and cheers can be heard breaking out from both band and audience at various points as a more relaxed and sociable atmosphere emerges during “The Boatman”, complete with obligatory didgeridoo accompaniment. “The Road” swiftly follows next, with all on stage clearly growing more comfortable in each other’s combined talents as they joyfully whisk the crowd from the plush seats of the iconic theatre to an imaginary festival campfire so that the real party can begin.

This album is a testament to the musical skill and passion that forms the backbone of what the band always bring as a live experience, whether ‘Collective’ or not, but it also shows that they have not been entirely honest with us in the past… there’s more than one way of Levellers live, and that’s ALL their own.

Reviewed by Si Easton

SECOND OPINION

I was there. As a fan of the band, knowing the show I attended was recorded for this audio \ video release is a real win. The entire show was filmed and is available as a Blu-Ray as well as the CD \ Digital \ Vinyl release of the concert which sees the band perform semi-acoustically alongside the string quartet that has now seen two studio releases and this live release under the ‘Collective’ banner.
It’s an inspired move from the band as they’ve re-imagined their songs perfectly to suit the string additions without losing the core of the melody of each one that we all fell in love with. The beauty of this particular release is that some of the more modern material such as ‘Drug Bust McGee’ , ‘The Cholera Well’ , ‘Born That Way’ and ‘Ghosts In The Water’ all get a rework and slot in with the 90s classics perfectly. It opens the band up to a new audience, it reengages an older audience and it lets the band tour, to put it simply, sitting down or standing up. The sitting down ‘Collective’ shows allow us to sink into the music as evidenced on this release, and then a new electric studio release, like 2020’s ‘Peace’ sees them switch up a gear (and lose the chairs)so they can bring their activist’s fire and brimstone to the fore once more.
Lyrically this is as passionate as ever from the band, playing to a sold-out Hackney Empire, making it the perfect setting. If you’ve yet to experience Levellers’ music this way, you should.

Reviewed by Adrian Hextall

Score 8/10

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Levellers Collective UK Tour March 2025

Thu 06 Guildford, G Live

Fri 07 Cambridge, Corn Exchange

Sat 08 Northampton, Royal & Derngate

Sun 09 York, Barbican

Tue 11 Buxton, Opera House

Wed 12 Buxton, Opera House

Thu 13 Birmingham, Symphony Hall

Fri 14 Nottingham, Royal Concert Hall

Sat 15 Liverpool, Philharmonic Hall

Sun 16 Malvern, Theatre

Tue 18 Bath, The Forum

Wed 19 Torquay, Princess Theatre

Thu 20 Poole, Lighthouse

Fri 21 Aylesbury, Waterside Theatre

Sat 22 Croydon, Fairfield Concert Hall

Sun 23 Basingstoke, The Anvil

Tue 25 Truro, Hall for Cornwall

Tickets for the tour are on sale now from www.myticket.co.uk and www.levellers.co.uk.

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