And following Coach Party, here’s
another band I’m currently seeing rather a lot of… Third time this calendar
year for Croydon’s finest “Dirtbag Boyband” Bears In Trees, my daughter Jami’s
favourite music makers that don’t rhyme with Trailer Lift, and a band who not only
entertained us both with their own wide-eyed brand of inclusive, affirmative
jangly indie pop at Bristol Fleece in April (gig 1,324), but who also brought
the fun and sunshine to a noisy Friday afternoon at “2000 Trees” last month,
vocalist Callum also recording a video message for Jami after their buoyant pop
set. Chap! So, despite this gig filling in a blank space (that Trailer Lift
again… grrr…) between 2 pre-arranged shows and making this a 3-in-3-nights run
for me, we couldn’t miss this one at The Joiners, one of my favourite venues
and one for which (on the band’s insistence, as they advised me at “Trees”)
lifted their usual 18+ criteria!
So, a late Saturday afternoon drive down South got us parked up just around the corner at 6.15; the queue of young fans already stretched down the alley to the side of the venue, so we jumped in and did shuttle runs for food (well, I held our spot as Jami went for chips, at least!). Ran into a Chinese takeaway-bound Callum, thanking him again for the vid, and Jami took the opportunity to give him a friendship bracelet! In at 7.30 doors (we miscalculated, thinking it was 7!) and grabbed a spot near the front, house right. Tiny Umbrellas, AKA the softly spoken and very young solo guitarist DT, was a very hushed opener, on early at 7.50 and playing pastoral, introspective and melancholy material on the awkwardness of nascent young relationships (viz an early “Friendzone” and “100 Poems” in particular, in which she called for audience members to write “purge” letters for a forthcoming video). Think Cavetown’s quieter moments, albeit turned down a few hundred notches… luckily, the young crowd was often pindrop silent during her performance! The final number “Just For Company”, which featured a left/right crowd call and response singalong, was as rocking as it got for Tiny Umbrellas (“like ones in a cocktail?” asked Jami…!)…
A quick run back to the car to dump J’s merch, then Bears In Trees joined us in short order, just after 8.30! The Woodentopsy skiffle/ rockabilly rhythm and Summery C86 guitar jangle of opener “Seaside”, apt for this Summer seaside tour, kicked things off, before Callum inquired, “are you ready to dance a lot?” to cheers from their young and devoted massive. The irrepressible “Heaven Sent Is A Coffee Cup” not only got the crowd dancing, but as usual saw Callum depart the stage and join in the pogoing mosh at the front!
Thereafter, Bears In Trees delivered
another fun, all-action, all-inclusive “live” set, revelling in and reinforcing
the strong bond with their young LGBTQ+ -savvy crowd, who often sang along to
every word. Callum fired a bubble machine (apparently acquired from Aldi in
Salisbury on the way down!) during “Henry Says” (“about a friend who throws
rocks at other rocks!”) then bemoaned the bubble juice which subsequently got
on his keys (“it’s really slippery!”). The band delved back for oldie “Sitting
Pretty” (Ian deadpanning, “[from] 2019? 2017? Even I didn’t like us in 2017!!”)
before Callum resorted to another prop, this time an inflatable cactus which
members of the audience were invited to use as hoopla target practice –
unsuccessfully, I might add (“Exeter [last night] were much better!” remarking
Callum).
A “mood changer”, namely the more stripped-back, plaintive and melancholy “Confetti”, was nonetheless a very lovely mid-set highlight, featuring a reverentially hushed singalong, Ian commenting at its’ conclusion, “most of the time we make you feel sad in a happy way; [that one] makes you feel sad in a sad way…” However, the soaring hook of the subsequent and ebullient “Injured Crow” brought back the mood of upbeat buoyancy, before a blind audience vote resulted in the band again delving back, this time for 2017’s “The Musical”, a pacey and ramshackly embryonic indie strumalong number recalling early 80’s James, no less! Set “closer” “Hot Chocolate” (a likely inclusion on my 2024 “Best Of” Compo CD) was a superb keytar-led breathless indie banger and the “best of” of tonight for me as well, the guys again taking stage front, line abreast, for the goony dance at the denouement.
A couple of encores, rounding off
with the jangly call-and-response of “Fresh Concrete” closed out another fine
Bears In Trees set, and another lovely night out with the daughter of the house.
Early too, as we grabbed drummer George’s list then, with Jami’s feet aching,
took off well before 10! Home just after 11.20 after another thoroughly upbeat
and effervescent Bears In Trees gig. Happy to come back anytime!
No comments:
Post a Comment