The Ark is a small folk club venue and perfect for watching Lloyd Cole and two others use acoustic guitars, a mandolin and banjo to reinvent his back catalogue. The simple but beautifully played arrangements make the lyrics come to the fore - showing what a wonderful turn of phrase he has and how funny he can be. Many of his more recent songs dealing with middle aged angst were well received - but stripped down versions of 2CV, Perfect Skin and Heartbroken worked equally well After all these years he still seems almost shy on stage - but the between song asides were fresh and witty - a wonderful relaxed vibe.