'Spectrum' is a new night once a month to showcase Brighton based talent at the Dome Studio Theatre which follows on from the previous 'Source New Music Night' and now sponsored by Resident Records, who are celebrating their 10th year in business as well as finalists for The Music Week Award 'Best Independent Record Shop'. Renaming the night 'Spectrum' is ingenious and instead of bringing you 'new music', their remit is to give you a spectrum of styles and if the first night's performance is anything to go by they seem to be right on the money with a diverse selection of music which hopefully is a sign that the new regime really 'understands' music. Time will tell if they manage to maintain this for their future shows.
Kicking off the event was Grace Carter. A young lass with a wonderful voice. The idea of the first act is to give a new young talent some exposure and experience performing on the big stage, a daunting experience, especially on launch night with a few hundred people watching however the band put on a solid performance but it was the final track that really caught my attention. Grace introduced the song explaining it had special personal meaning behind it. Then she took the microphone off the stand and started the song with more dynamism and passion than she had achieved with the songs that came before. Grace really let rip from the heart, grabbing the attention of everyone in the room. If she can tap into this emotion and bring it to the rest of her material then Grace Carter is a name you will be hearing again.
 
Next up was grasshopper, who had a visual artist doing some impressive back projection and boy did it make them stand out. Not that they needed any of the effects as it's not too hard to be blown away by their music alone especially when taking into account that they are all still teenagers. Nevertheless at times in the set I did feel they were trying a little too hard to impress although the crowd loved it, so they obviously did not notice. But grasshopper's main strength derives from their song writing which shows a maturity and technical ability well beyond their years while their set seemed to go very quickly which is always a good sign and I'm sure they will be back higher up the bill one day. If the progression between their first EP and their new release is anything to go by then it won't take them long to get the experience to make something that sets the world on fire.
 
Grasshopper were followed by Abi Wade, someone I've heard a lot about recently and justifiably so if tonight's performance was anything to go by. Abi is mainly a one woman band, surrounded by all sorts of instruments and technical toys, her main instrument being her cello which she plays in an interesting and diverse ways, mixing percussion and melodies well. Along with this Abi has triggered samples, kick boxes, effects peddles, keyboards and even a xylophone. The latter being something she said she fell in love with when she saw one in a studio recently. In the middle of the set Abi Wade was joined by Eliza Jaye on keyboards and violin. As Abi said, she has been playing solo for a long time and just started performing with Eliza when Eliza is not doing her own one woman blues rock shows which I'm sure will come to Spectrum soon. They certainly worked well together and added another element to the show, which was more engaging as sometimes I felt the clever solo tricks and unusual styles can distract from the music rather than add to it. Maybe once I am more familiar with the songs this might be less of an issue. I must get her album and give it a good listen then check her out again.
 
The final act and first headliner of the 'Spectrum' night was 'Fear Of Men' who were quite a surprise as they had not really hit my radar previously, though the name did ring a bell. So I was keen to see what I had obviously been missing. Again this band were tight and professional, they had a nice punchy sound and a great stage presence. The only problem was after a few songs they all started to sound the same to me. At the time I was not sure if was because I was starting to feel overloaded but on checking out their new album after the show it appears that's what they do. Solid tunes played well but lacking the diversity or something that really pushes my buttons. Still a good band to check out and if their music appeals to you they are well worth seeing live.
 
So all in all, a good start to the Spectrum nights in association with the wonderful Resident Records. It's really great to see local emerging bands performing live on a decent stage with good lighting and a good PA and I left buzzing with what I had seen and heard as did the rest of the crowd. I will certainly be checking out more 'Spectrum' nights in the future when they return after the May festival madness to see the many talented musicians that live around the Brighton and Hove area.
Jonski Mason
 
 
Fear of Men: fearofmen.co.uk
Abi Wade: abiwade.com