I’d been eyeing the Villagers gig at the Old Market for quite some time, and following the release of new album, Darling Arithmetic, all the elements were in place for a fantastic gig: great local venue, wonderful artist and cracking new material to perform.
The current tour is obviously about promoting the new album, and tonight’s set features all nine songs from Darling Arithmetic. However, new material is cleverly interlaced with what is a very strong back catalogue. There’s a wonderful cohesion about the set; built around the line-up of drums, upright bass, acoustic guitar, keys and harp with smatterings of trumpet, and pitch perfect backing vocals. Older material has been re-arranged to suit the aesthetic of the new and everything comes together in delightful, organic harmony.
Even though I am very familiar with the new record, its songs come across uniquely – either through embellishment of parts, injected dynamism or simply the conviction of the performance. There are so many treats on offer tonight, but Little Bigot’s arrangement may be the star of the show – the opening verse delivered as a cut-glass three-part harmony accompanied only by the tick-tocking of muted guitar strings, giving way to an electrifying performance. The song’s playful parts are given full rein and the effect is very much like a musical shot in the arm to bring it to life.
The most arresting aspect of the evening is the vocal skill on display. Whereas a lot Villagers’ recorded output is delivered in an understated manner, frontman Connor J O’Brien’s variety, range and mic control tonight are remarkable. So Naïve sees his voice at its most fragile with quivering vibrato, interweaving with the drone of the keys to create a ghostly, moving fusion. Becoming A Jackal is full of purity and passion, Hot Scary Summer is soulful, and Darling Arithmetic is suitably tender.
There are lovely touches at every turn: the doubling of guitar with harp in Dawning On Me, the tuneful, rich trumpet on That Day and the speakeasy rhythm section assigned to No One To Blame. There are also some songs that are so good, they don’t need embellishment or re-imagining – My Lighthouse is actually stripped of its harmonies, but the forever twisting chords and melody are simply compelling.
The Waves provides the biggest sonic onslaught towards the end of the set, coming at the right time to lift the show, but also providing an interesting contradiction. It’s undeniably a great song and this is a fine rendition; however, it also shows how far Villagers has come between second album, {Awayland} and Darling Arithmetic. The Waves is incredibly dense – both in its arrangement and its imagery – whereas the final song tonight (no.3 in the encore), Courage, is spare and elegant, allowing listeners to inhabit the song more easily. It feels like a big step forward to me.
Tonight’s set is spot on – never a lull in atmosphere or dip in quality. Impressively, there are another 10 songs that could have been performed tonight and played an equally strong part in proceedings. Looking ahead to the next album and tour (I am already excited), the mind boggles as to how good the sets will be and in what direction O’Brien will take things in. One thing is for sure, quality is guaranteed.
Adam Atkins