Went to see the Mandolinquents at the Sage, Gateshead last night. Lovely playing, and very nice people (I had a chat with a couple of them) but there was something not quite right about it. It felt a little over rehearsed (particularly the comic banter) and everything was played as written - there didn't seem to be a place for any improvisation. A bit too much classical as well : I'd have liked to hear them do some jazz and folk pieces (which they do on their CDs of course). The audience was really rather surprising - there was only on eperson I knew there and only a couple of others I recognised. It felt like some kind of concert party.