A night of mixed emotions for all concerned makes for an interesting vibe at the Brudenell Social Club tonight. On one hand, promoter James Brown is all a turmoil over the cancellation of joint headliners This Et Al due to today’s surprise split announcement and on the other it’s his birthday. Nothing like living in interesting times.
I am running a tad late, so I only catch the closing song of Her Name Is Calla’s set, ‘New England.’ It is a pretty almighty noise though. Thom Corah and Sophie Barnes are torturing unholy noises from their brass – not altogether in tune, but that’s the essence of despair, Tom Morris is almost weeping into his guitar and new kid Adam Weikert is looking bewildered on drums. Slightly abridged for time constraints, the toms kick in and the whole thing collapses angrily, sweating onto the stage like a tantrum made flesh. I look forward to the tour.
Fran’s lilting folkery is very much the lull before the storm tonight, a soothing balm to take the sting out of things. Solo tonight, she lights and warms the stage with ‘I Came To You Under Winter Sun,’ her last single, a very relaxed, amiable performance rather than an intense heartbreaking one. She dedicates ‘This Is Dedicated’ to James only to forget the words. No matter. She may not have the melodic fury of This Et Al, but as musical negotiator, she does a sterling job.
Talking about Stirling jobs, The Twilight Sad are from Glasgow. Hmm. Whatever, last time I saw them they damaged my hearing in such a sweet way that I am back for more. I don’t know how they manage it, but tonight as they play on a smaller stage than when I last saw them, it appears to be more crowded and emptier at the same time. Noise soon fills any gaps and as James Graham does his best to adopt a nouveau Ian Curtis style my ears start to buzz pleasantly. The secret to it all is in the primal drums of Mark Devine, playing the heartbeat of the world so that when Craig Orzell and Andy Macfarlane descend into drone so intense you could lie on it comfortably, you can still twitch rhythmically like a meat puppet on electrodes. As I lose myself in the crowd to that enticing I rhythm, I am filled with remorse as there would have been no more perfect pairing than this band and This Et Al. My remorse is soon bludgeoned out of me leaving James to scream my pain in his Glaswegian brogue. Not the most animated of performances but be still my beating heart… such pain and desire can only be love.
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