Reverieme
Gentle, catchy pop, replete with hooks and harmonies. Sometimes bleak lyrics such as “There’ll be nothing left to hope for” are hidden inside jaunty melodies. It fits into the great Scottish indie mould of Belle and Sebastien, Aberfeldy or Camera Obscura.
Paring down from a five to four piece tonight, they shuffle bass player to cajon. Meanwhile, keyboards have become glockenspiel. Electric guitar adds to the setup, while our singer moves between guitar and mandolin. Of standout impact, however, are the harmonies. Despite the changes, they sound totally at ease.
They win the audience with easy, friendly banter. They confess that on their set lists, they’ve substituted in the word ‘beast’, so “Lost at Sea” becomes “Lost at Beast” I’ve no idea what “Beast in my Eyes” was originally, but I’d love to hear that one. It’s all very witty and endearing.
Thank You So Nice
Straight-up 4-4 punk by a no-nonsense 3-piece. Continuing the punk anarchic bent, they describe their second song as being about the collapse of western civilisation. “You live with the animals.”
Guitar solos are not so much complex lyrical meanderings as an assault on the instrument. At other times, though, the heavy echo on the telecaster makes it sound vaguely Shadows-esque. In fact, in appearance they seem less like the Sex Pistols and more in keeping with their name – “Nice”. So it seems slightly incongruous when they announce “This next song’s about fighting.”
There is a great deal of head nodding, and the odd bit of jiving. Their final number is an instrumental epic that features a pounding three minute intro. It’s hard not to move to it. It has its chilled out Floyd moments, before growing louder and wilder.
The Machine Room
Funky and loud. As the drums snap and crackle, falsetto chimes out over layered harmonies. Theirs is a sound built of sparse input from many sources – with no fewer than four guitars in use on one song. Only the Eagles would boast as many. Most other songs use a variety of synths and keyboards to flesh out the sound. Standard vocal delivery is interspersed with banshee-like wailing. It adds a sense of menace, and helps tie everything together.
If anything could be said for the performance, the lively music is not matched by the expressions on their faces. But we’ll put that down to concentration.
The drummer is very impressive, in the most understated way. He uses all sorts of inventive combinations of beats that subconsciously add interest to the song without drowning it. He’s also rock-steady.
It is a packed Voodoo Rooms that welcomes The Machine Room. Their following is notable, and hopefully growing.
