Presently experiencing work at Venue mag. This is my review of a Cave Singers gig. Originally published here.
"Every musician knows that you have to dress to match your sound — and as a hirsute chap in a baseball cap and his three bandmates attired in well-worn shirts come on, we all know that Bristol’s The Short Life Of Gracie are very well aware of this. Their music is the whimsical blind date where Conor Oberst’s drolly dark Americana falls for Belle & Sebastian’s quaint twee: an endearing reflection of their appearance. Underpinned by rolling bass-lines and overlaid with bittersweet Wave Pictures narratives, the natural chemistry between the two guitarists is evidenced by their cooing harmonies and playful riffage. The SLOG are one of two highly impressive preambles tonight.
The second — London-based Deer Park — manage to fill half the room with an enthusiastic crowd. Possessing a witty American croon, frontman Mark Grassick stirs the audience with his literate offhand rants which evoke The Hold Steady’s Craig Finn and Okkervil River’s Will Sheff at their deftest. Keyboardist Jo Shiel provides the saccharine vocal support whilst the contrasting Grassick croakily directs his band through a sprightly set of macabre folk-rock. The affecting ‘Something Here Is Fractured’ and the cacophonous ‘Waiting On A Change’ prove the standouts.
So far, so good, and with the main event looming the Fleece promptly approaches capacity. Excitement heightens as the three Cave Singers set up their gear. And so they start. The audience is rapt. Whether a result of the ineffable noise they make for a trio, the oddly soothing rasps of lead singer Pete Quirk or the genuine warmth which he exudes, we’re indubitably hooked and it’s impossible to stop listing reasons why. Derek Fudesco, ex-bassist in Pretty Girls Make Graves, present lead guitarist in the Singers, is seated in one of those anomalous Robert Fripp postures and manipulates his beaten axe all the while whipping his straggly black mop back and forth. He also controls a bass pedal which fills up their sound with thumping, nod-inducing loops. Intricate percussionist Marty Lund holds it all together, making use of a ludicrously diverse selection of maracas, bongos and washboards.
Most critics have rightly lauded the group’s unforeseen decision to unleash a heavier side on new LP ‘No Witch’. Indeed, the live incarnations of the raucous implicated definitely outshine the mellow rest. The pinnacle is latest single 'Black Leaf' which recalls Seasick Steve in its bluesy garage feel, whilst the similarly triumphant ‘No Prosecution If We Bail' provokes mass shimmying and the odd sing-along. Direct crowd interaction is frequent in the banter between numbers: Quirk cosies up to and amuses the Bristol audience through declaring his penchant for ‘pie minister’, as he calls it, and expounding on his idea of smoking frozen cider. We silently consider giving these eccentrics all the pies and booze they want in return for another performance like this."
