Review: The Proclaimers in Hastings - a well-oiled hit machine with no signs of slowing down

Famous Scottish musician brothers Craig and Charlie Reid of The Proclaimers came to Hastings as part of their largest New Zealand tour yet. Photo / Murdo Macleod

Hawke’s Bay this week welcomed a Scottish invasion (of sorts), with rock icons The Proclaimers gracing the Toitoi Hastings Opera House stage.

The Edinburgh, Leith-born siblings Craig and Charlie Reid have been making music together for 40 years now, and if Wednesday night’s show is anything to go by, they aren’t showing any signs of slowing down.

As a matter of fact, the two sounded nearly identical as they did in their records all those years ago.

A surprisingly mixed-age crowd arrived at 7.30pm to hear Kiwi duo The Bads do a 30-minute warm-up set.

An interesting mix of blues, country and psychedelic rock, performers Brett Adams and Dianne Swann held their own with just two guitars, a loop pedal and microphones.

The pair expressed gratitude for being able to play after what had been a tough time for many, a sentiment that felt very apparent from those in the room.

After a short break, the Scottish superstars graced the stage at 8.30pm, starting with the title single from their latest album Dentures Out.

One of the most alluring things about the brothers is their thick Scottish drawl, a trademark of sorts in their music.

Dentures Out, with its lyrics alluding to Britain being “old and rather thin” and “wise after the fact”, was the perfect opportunity for the brothers to launch into full proud-Scotsman mode, painting a rousing picture of two passionate musicians and activists.

After such a strong start - and thundering applause - I expected people to already be up on their feet. But patiently, we sat in our seats as the Reids and their extremely talented four-piece backing band powered through an extensive catalogue of hits.

Let’s Get Married was sung with a cheeky sense of playfulness, and the brothers shone vocally as they belted out What Makes You Cry, which could be considered a true Scottish 90s power ballad.

The song that launched the group to initial success Sunshine on Leith, which was eventually made into a Jukebox musical, was sung with such passion.

What the brothers lacked in crowd interaction they made up for in pure musicianship, nearly 25 songs, with a sprinkling of old, new and classic.

When the first notes of crowd-pleaser Life With You began to play, I just about jumped out of my seat, but again, I had to be patient as clearly there was going to be a “payoff” near the end of the show.

And boy did that payoff come. Popularised in many movies, the last few songs were two classic “road trip” anthems.

I’m On My Way, had the audience up and dancing, with arms around shoulders and every lyric sung word for word.

I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles), arguably the duo’s most popular song, temporarily turned the Opera House into a Scottish pub, with people cheering, clapping and singing along like it was no one’s business.

An encore of two songs then kept the party going. After a night like that, one thing is clear: I would certainly be the man to walk a thousand miles to see The Proclaimers again.