Out
of town gigging for a (recent) change, for another band scratching that 90’s
reunion itch… and this one I saw coming a mile off. Or at least 22 months off,
since September 2014 (gig 926), when Tanya Donelly supported half-sister
Kristen Hersh’s Throwing Muses, throwing (!) into her set not only a couple of
her own Muses numbers (dating from when her poppier Muses material was the
candyfloss to her semi-sibling’s broken glass, the soothing balm to Kristin’s
traumatic fever), but, more significantly, a few numbers from her own
subsequent splendid 90’s dreampop-indie band Belly. A Belly reunion was, for
me, on the cards from then, given the seriously enthusiastic reception evidenced
at that gig, and the only surprise, following a sprinkling of shows around the
Boston area featuring Tanya and her Belly partner in crime, “rock chick”
bassist Gail Greenwood, was that it took until earlier this year to be
confirmed!
Confirmed
it was, and when the tour announcement included a Bristol date, I jumped on pre-sale
tix for me and Rach. Tonight we hit the road early, joined by fellow Belly-ites
“Beef” plus Rich and Helen for a swift drive down to the usual Trenchard Car
Park Level 8, hitting the venue early doors at 7.30. Not many in, and not many
expected tonight, with both the back bar and balconies shut off, but
nonetheless an enthusiastic and knowledgeable crowd (some old school Muses and
Breeders shirts out of mothballs for tonight!) filled up as Rach, Beef and I
took our usual stage left spot near the front, and Rich and Helen met up with a
Bristol-based friend and split off stage right. We didn’t know the significance
of that, at the time… The witching hour of 8.30 was greeted with a puff of dry
ice and a pastoral intro tune, then Belly took the boards, a beaming Tanya and
a clearly keyed-up and ready to rock Gail leading the Gorman brothers onstage.
Chris took his stool and kicked into the galloping drumbeat of the breathless,
spooky “Dusted”. And we were on our way, or so we thought…
Immediately
we could hear – or NOT hear, as the case may be – that something was seriously
amiss with the mix. It was awful,
with bass and drum not so much dominating, as being pretty much the only instruments coming through our
stage left speakers. Very little guitar and hardly any voice, it was drum
dominated and echoey, like a bad wedding band or an acoustic act playing inside
a steel tube. Despite a few shouts for more guitar, the band ploughed on, Gail
throwing low-slung Ramone-like rock poses and starting some rock clapping for
“Gepetto”, but the sound remained bass-and-drums only for 4 or 5 numbers, the
frustration made worse by Tanya’s propensity to come off-mic for the higher and
more powerful notes.
The
band finally paused to introduce new number “Punish”, and a very loud voiced
punter behind us finally got the message through. Following some queries to the
mixing desk, it was apparent that only the stage-left speakers were affected
(onstage monitors must’ve been fine, hence the band ploughing on, and Rich advised
afterwards it sounded fine from his spot). A bit of debate as to what to do
(Gail suggested, “everyone shift this way [stage right], this is where the cool
kids are!” then jokingly remarked, “free t-shirts for everyone!”), whether to
take a planned intermission early or carry on and hope the problem was fixable,
resulted in the band deciding to continue their, “bass and drum jam”…
Thankfully
midway through “Punish”, the speakers kicked in, although they were
intermittent for a while and the guitar remained very understated in the mix
throughout, largely affecting the faster, rockier numbers. A disappointing
situation was however largely averted by the band’s good humour; a setback so
early into their nascent reunion might’ve turned sour, but Tanya’s open,
smiling demeanour and guitarist Tom’s and particularly Gail’s humorous
interplay made the situation more palatable, so well done to them for that!
To
be fair, they also played some great music; “Judas My Heart” was a brooding
slice of acoustic truckstop Americana with some lovely harmonies and snippets
from “She Loves You”; “The Bees” was stripped back and spooky, mysterious and
kooky; and whilst “Slow Dog” galloped along pleasantly enough but lacked
requisite guitar oomph to complement the militaristic choral drum pattern,
“”Full Moon, Empty Heart” was the best sounding number of the first set, Tanya
holding the opening “Sleeeeeeeeeep!!!!” note comfortably and performing some
luscious vocal gymnastics at the song’s denouement. Then, after a short
intermission, set 2 eased in with a touching acoustic “Untogether”, then took a
similar pattern to the first set, with the slower numbers the better sounding,
punchier and rockier numbers lacking a bit of beef, but the band’s winning
humour and positive attitude winning through. “We’re bound to fuck this one up,
so give us some cover!” they begged before the buoyant “Feed The Tree”, which
actually held up very well (the guitar sound being generally submerged for this
one anyway), Tanya giving her best vocal performance of the night, decisive and
authoritative. Newie “Comet” and “Spaceman” drifted lazily in a Summery vibe,
whilst “Low Red Moon” was a set highlight, creepy and deliciously stark, and
received a lengthy ovation. A discordant “Super Connected” closed out an
enthusiastically received set which could have sounded a whole lot better, but
was rescued overall from complete mix disaster by the band’s attitude and
strength of character. Well done!
After
stripped back encore “Thief” and some gushing yet sincere praise from the band,
I hit the front, prying a setlist from a patient roadie and inevitably running into
Devizes friend Alfie down there. Then, after meeting the crew and walking up
the hill to the car park, and before an M32 roadworks-delayed drive home, I was
accosted by some girls who remembered me from those 90’s Level 3 nights (which they
doubtless spent running for cover from my mad dancing!), and paid me a nice
compliment, “you used to be a lot older than us then, but you're the same age
as us now!” A suitably odd and entertaining way to conclude an odd and
entertaining evening!
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