Wednesday, March 08, 2006  

Wedding Present: Returned and Still Giving

Washington Post, Wednesday, March 8, 2006; Page C05

David Gedge headed straight for the merch table as soon as the Wedding Present's set ended on Sunday at the Black Cat. It's been 21 years and many lineup changes since Gedge formed the band in Leeds, England, yet he's still forced to hawk his own gear. That dedication to the independent ethos is just one reason to love Gedge; another is his smart and witty songs, 21 of which the Wedding Present played, including "Corduroy" and "Brassneck."

The quartet performed Gedge's hyperstrummed tunes with all the ferocity of a band just starting out -- and in many ways, it is. Gedge wrapped up the Wedding Present in 1997 to focus on a new project, Cinerama. But when that fizzled -- along with Gedge's longtime relationship with the woman who piloted the band with him -- the Wedding Present was reborn with 2005's "Take Fountain" CD. Lovelorn lyrics are Gedge's specialty, and his personal loss is a songwriter's gain.

Although he will turn 46 this April, Gedge still looks like his trim old self -- minus the awful beaver-pelt haircut he had for almost as long as Wedding Present was active. When he wasn't thrashing his guitar, Gedge gestured awkwardly while singing in his distinctive gargling baritone and when introducing songs. That led to a mocking imitation by the bassist from opening act Sally Crewe's band, who was watching from the back of the room. But Gedge knows he's a bit of a sexy dork, and his charming stage patter is a mixture of audience teasing and self-mockery: "We're the semilegendary Wedding Present," he deadpanned prior to "Always the Quiet One," and before a cover of "Falling," the theme song to "Twin Peaks," he claimed, "I'm getting too old for this." Not too old to sell T-shirts. --Christopher Porter

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