Review: Kiefer Sutherland in Brighton

Famous for his role as Federal Agent Jack Bower in TVs 24, Sutherland has also released two studio albums.

His latest, Reckless And Me, was released last year and he is currently touring the UK and Ireland.

Stepping on to the stage in a white blazer, scarf, and wide brimmed hat, Sutherland was met by a wall of people.

Chalk was heaving with the sold-out crowd, leaving not an inch of room in the venue.

He was not alone onstage, backed by a five-piece band all dressed in black, meaning that Sutherland could well and truly take centre stage.

Powering through his catalogue of rocky, country songs, he had the audience eating out of the palm of his hand, whooping and cheering every song.

In a way it was a shame you could not really hear what he was singing or saying when introducing each song.

Many of the crowd cried for the sound to be turned up, and the electric guitars were, rendering Sutherland’s acoustic guitar inaudible and his vocals barely any better.

Hanging his hat on a spare guitar stand, he crashed on through some more sombre songs such as Saskatchewan, making sure he gave the audience key notes on how, why and where each song was written.

At points, it felt like someone had turned on the audio commentary. It was all a bit much, particularly when his microphone was so quiet.

Sutherland then brought out an electric guitar, at which point the sound went through the roof, enough to give some a splitting headache.

He brought the set to a close, thanking the crowd for being such a fantastic audience and asking if he can take them everywhere they go.

The evening was marred by the poor sound quality, something Chalk is not usually associated with.

It was also strange to go to a concert where, at a guess, at least two thirds of the audience were there purely to say they had been in the same room as the performer.

All in all a disappointing evening of an over-full venue and poor sound quality.

Matthew Cousins