Opening in a solo capacity was the
young O Chapman. During the set, the
door regularly opened to allow a few gig comers in (no one would surely have
been leaving) and the sound of animated voices from the outside bar seemed to
blare in. The set had an intimate feel, recalling an earlier Paul Simon (or Kings of
Convenience for younger folk), but was strong enough to overcome these blasts
from outside. I bought his EP as I liked
O’s set and he was polite in promoting it . On the EP, lightly and
pleasingly embellished with a further four members there’s a breathy hint of
dark clouds.
T G Elias is the name of the singer
songwriter who tonight led a talented set of musicians and a co singer. I peered over the heads of the people in the
crowd to see a keyboardist sat low who wouldn’t look out of place adding
musical ambience to an upmarket cocktail bar.
T G talks prosaically and freely about bowel movement
problems although this didn’t bring any notable worried backtracking from those
at the front. The first song was getting into its stride when there was an
impromptu blast of guitar based raucousness.
From the band’s reaction we guessed that this was not some
abrasive sample add on and heads turned round to the mixing desk. TG and the
band took this in good humour but sometime later in the same song, he decreed
that he wasn’t hearing what he wanted, and a more stripped down sound followed. When on song, it’s very accomplished
Americana with harmonies and double bass and an act to watch. I wonder if the Badly Drawn Boy style stream
of consciousness narrative is a feature every time they play?
It was a warm first September evening
and the room was full. The place was
getting hotter and I went out the front of the pub to get some fresh air. Some drinkers did the same but they were
ushered back in by the Pub’s security man. Back in the room, I found a place by
some locked French Doors where I thought I may catch a draught.
With a prolific work rate, Colorama
last played in the area nine months ago trailing their previous work.
At the end of that set they introduced a riff led song called Good Music
which showcased the skills of their guitarist.
Carwyn seemed to indicate that he wasn’t wholly convinced by the song.
In the time that has passed, he’s nailed his colours – or Colorama- to the mast
and delivered this adventurous offering taking the song as its title
track. It’s a confident enough work to
be played in its entirety tonight.
Good Music may seem a presumptuous
title to those non acquainted with the band but I wonder if in the title there is a suggestion that what’s contained here – with its regular groove and a
smattering of upbeat, danceable music can also produce the goods. In this hot room room tonight, numbers like
Do the Pump don’t win any awards for lyrical profoundness but they initiate
some limb loosening movement from the audience.
Elsewhere, the mood is taken down a notch with the Indie Why is She and
My Predicament which may be about the missed David Fletcher. More than one person in the bands on stage was
dressed modishly smart tonight so when Carwyn concedes that the ‘(mind!) it’s
hot in here’ a front rower points out that he is very buttoned up. To his resultant course of actions, one
thinks ‘just the one button?’ but the more I got absorbed into this set, the
less stifling the environment felt.
(The above picture was taken at a previous gig at Salford Kings Arms on Nov '11; there were five members on stage tonight)
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