School halls often seem an odd environment for concerts to me. They're usually large, requiring a strong crowd to seem full, and need PA installed.  They are, however, a good half-way venue for Christians who want to promote concerts for young people (too young for clubs and bars) who might not attend one in a church/church hall. 

Thankfully this concert was well attended by a fair mix of teens and adults.  I was lucky to find tickets left at the door.  The hall was a little badly-shaped, but there is nothing a promoter can do about that, and it didn't affect the concert too badly. 

The support band, Vision, was very young. They may be insulted if I'm wrong, but they looked around 14, with the keyboard player being a couple of years younger. They opened with a fluid guitar sound, playing a cool lead with a touch of prog - surprising in a group so young. Once the whole band was in place they turned to a more aggressive sound, mixing a little punk, a bit of britpop, and some standard rock. The drummer and bass player were tight, and I was very impressed by the atmospheric sounds generated by the lead guitarist, but the vocals were not very tuneful, and the band's image needs some work. This will come with time.  For now, the frontman/vocalist/guitarist seemed to be trying to imitate other frontmen, without a confident style of his own. The band did have promise, however, and got a warm reception from members of the crowd (although I wonder whether these were friends). 

Phatfish was the established band of the evening. They've released a couple of albums, tour about half the year, and have led worship at some large events. They certainly were confident and had good stage presence. The words to many of the songs were shown on a projector (but with cool backdrops, no plain fuzzy OHP), and the show was a mixture of performance and worship which worked well. Musically the band still retains a fair bit of its acid-jazz origins, but has a more mainstream rock sound with touches of delirious? and the odd dancier thing. Vocalist Lou was particularly impressive with a strong voice and wide range. The band put on a good show, and also did a gospel presentation which was simple, yet strong.  Lou told of a friend who'd said he'd become a Christian when he was older and settled, but died three weeks later in a car crash. I'm sometimes dubious about gospel presentations at concerts, finding them often trite, but this one was well done. 

I think Phatfish could have a very bright future - especially if they could get a support slot playing larger venues.