Debasing the traditional song structure is a brave move on record. Lola Colt’s choice to snub the archetypal chorus on much of their latest LP – Twist Through The Fire – was always set to divide their audience. On record it works well but how would they transpose vast verses into the live setting? With the air-conditioning vent leaking on the chap in front of me, it seemed everything – machine or human – was sweating in anticipation.

Six members swamped the small stage of The Hope. The venue’s sound man, Leon, was dealt the difficult task of accommodating all the members and the enormous collection of instruments they brought with them. The soupy sound that erupts from the stage is cast through these; a sea of twelve string guitars, synthesisers and percussion trinkets swamp the stage with members switching throughout. As the group cut through an assortment of the old and new, the likes of ‘I Get High If You Get High’ see guitarist James fluctuate between a six-string, twelve-string and a tom drum. His chameleonic approach to the instruments is marvellous to watch and a skill that is shared between the entire group.

Their sound tonight cuts around loose-fitting psychedelia and husky Dead Weather blues. Lola Colt manage to inject a lifeline of interest within guitar music that has ended up at too many loose ends over the years. Miraculously, they prove tonight that the finest music often lies behind dynamic and the ability to step back from the forefront at times. Songs such as ‘Twist Through The Fire’ – masterpieces on record – prove just as intriguing live. Instrumentation comes together like Ikea furniture – nothing is left to improvisation or chance.

To suggest their performance is haunting is a slight generalisation – an easy category to place their music in. It instead edges between intimidation and utter kaleidoscopic euphoria. The lack of chorus throughout most songs leads for this morphing movement between climax and breakdown. The serpentine way in which songs move means you rarely expect anything, thus keeping you hooked throughout.

Each member has an approach to the stage that implies complete control of it. You would be forgiven for forgetting that this band have only been active for a few years. Kitty covers seductive allure with her impulsive body jerks. She plays a good frontwoman even when she is removed from her centre-stage role in Saint Agnes to more of a reserved status on keyboard. Guitarists, Matt and James, propel energy into their playing style. Matt in particular makes full use of the stage and shows no reservations in writhing his body within inches of the crowd. Due to this fact, ‘Bones’ reaches its climatic Spaghetti-Western showdown. His energy emphasised guitar sections as if the notes travelled through his body before being exiled through the amplifier. Resonating bends are held and blistered around the capacity audience.

A fair amount of the sound tonight rests upon the rhythm section in the group. This appears to be where Lola Colt really cut their teeth as a group. The cinematic-noir blanket generates the tribal, Black Angels-esque drumming. Plodding in its nature – Martin on drums and Sinah on bass lock rhythmic horns regularly. Rather than these horns being piercing, they instead carry a dense velocity with them. Each strike in ‘Heartbreaker’ catches you in the stomach, bullying you slightly. ‘Dead Moon Jeopardy’ carries more flamboyancy in the rhythm but once again captains the other five members through the song.

Gun Overbye’s presence onstage carries all the characteristics of a formidable frontwoman. Her intimidating figure bellows down to you. ‘Moonlight Mixing’ yells with anger, she captures your complete attention from the moment of greeting to thanking you at the end. The Jungle Book’s ‘Kaa’ captures Mowgli with hypnotic swirls and Gun does something similar with her piercing stare.

My only concern would be where the songs grew through the psychedelic tendencies of Lola Colt’s catalogue. ‘Away From The Water’ spans as a song and spirals of lighting were demanded by the sound. After catching the six-piece previously, drenched in hypnotic blues and greens it is easy to feel slightly let down from that angle. The audience needed something additional to cling on to when the group grew more experimental in their sound. Nevertheless, for much of the set Lola Colt proved that their unique approach to music does not only work on record. By the end of the set their sound had commanded a sole crowd-member to climb upon the monitor and dance away – a fitting statement for how Lola Colt will leave Brighton victorious.
Tom Churchill

Website: lolacolt.com
Facebook: facebook.com/LolaColt
Twitter: twitter.com/Lola_Colt