Yeah, so I'm a bit late but I've had a busy few days. Actually, that’s a bare faced lie. I've had several days of alternating between being incredibly lazy and panicking that I'm not doing any uni work so burying my head in a book for hours on end. Either way, I haven’t felt like blogging, but this gig was ace so everyone needs to know about it.
It was in Leeds, which automatically makes it ace. I like going to gigs in Leeds because it means I can descend on my parents for a day of a warm house and decent food. Of course, on this occasion my mother convinced me to sing in a carol service, but usually their house isn’t nearly so stressful. The other wonderful thing about Leeds is that it reminds me of my youth. Going back to the Cockpit (where this gig was at) always brings back fond memories. The first time I went there some fat guy stage dived and squashed me.
And the Cockpit itself is a lovely venue. It’s curved, and I think that does something to the acoustics and it’s quite small so gives off the best atmosphere. The bar also doesn’t want half your life savings for a Sailor Jerry and Coke, so that’s also quite nice.
Right, I better stop wittering on about irrelevant fluff and tell you about this music. All three acts were fantastic. The opening act was Ayria (and we all know how I feel about her). The smaller venue did wonders for her and she got to interact with the audience a lot more so as well as the banging choons she was also a complete sweetheart. I met her again after the gig and she remembered me. Oh yes, I am going up in the world.
The next act was Leeds locals Zeitgeist Zero. I have to admit that I didn’t know much about them. I'd only heard a few songs and I don’t think I was concentrating. More fool me. They were superb. Their sound is a spooky rockabilly kinda scene with some solid electro keyboards thrown in there. They reminded me a bit of the Horrorpops. I'm not a big fan of psychobilly/rockabilly but Zeitgeist Zero are an exception. The singer’s spooky demeanour (lots of smouldering looks and elbow length evening gloves) was a joy to watch and the projection they’d rigged up to play on the back of the stage really added something to the performance. I had a conversation with the (rather lovely) bassist after the show and apparently the films were out of sync with the songs, but you really couldn’t tell. I’ll definitely be making the effort to find out more about these guys.
It was the third time I'd seen the Cruxshadows and they’ve never been a disappointment. Once you get used to band members wandering around in the audience during the set you realise that it’s a great way to do a gig. There was a fantastic rapport all the way through. They had a new guitarist and a new dancer (a very new dancer, she started during the current tour) but the music was as well played as ever. I'm probably wrong about this (I don’t know my music nearly as well as I should do) but there’s no one out there doing exactly what they do. There’s a strong folk influence in there with the violins and the guitar and keyboards seem to compliment each other rather than compete with each other, however I will admit there were a few songs that I didn’t realise had such a strong guitar part until I actually saw someone up there playing the notes. Although the performance element isn’t as strong as their narrative lyrics allow them to be you still get the sense that they mean every word they sing. The finale of ‘Marilyn My Bitterness’ (involving half the audience, including me, being hauled up on stage to dance around the various guitars and violins) was everything you’d want from a closing number-fun, well played and the high note you need before you retire to the bar to parch the thirst you’ve drummed up from singing along with every single word for the last hour and a half.
I'm in favour of good gigs.
Peace and love x
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