IT may have taken over a decade, but success finally arrived for sisters Allison and Catherine Pierce thanks to their 2011 release You and I crashing into the UK Top Five and proving that hard work and quality songwriting still count for something in this day and age. Their latest album, Creation released earlier this month ago looks set to build on this taking the duo to heights they could only dream about in their formative years back in Birmingham, Alabama.

Returning to the region for the first time since their 2010 show, as relative unknowns at Northumbria University, this was the perfect chance for their fans to catch them in the intimate Hall 2 before they inevitably hit the bigger stages, and those crammed into the hall weren`t disappointed.

With their main influences of Joni Mitchell and Simon Garfunkel giving a good reference point to their sound, but with a slightly darker, more contemporary undercurrent, The Pierces delivered a set of dreamy melancholic, spine-tingling melodies with delicious close harmonies from the sisters, who at times bore an uncanny resemblance to the Wilson sisters of Heart in their 1970s heyday. Their wonderful blend of Folk, Pop and Rock kept things varied and dynamic.

The set was made up mostly from their past two albums, with You`ll Be Mine and breakthrough single Glorious shimmering with a feel-good summer vibe, while the melodramatic Love You More added a touch of menace. A show stopping cover of Simon and Garfunkel’s Kathy`s Song was breath-taking in its purity, featuring just their two voices.

Stepping into The Sage was almost akin to travelling back to a time when songwriting was a real craft and musicianship ruled the roost as The Pierces proved emphatically that quality does eventually rise to the top.

Mick Burgess