“Celebrating the spirit of independence and culture of live music” – Independent Venue Week has come round once again for its fourth year and, with the help of the Arts Council England, we got to experience a particularly brilliant week of music. With a rich choice of incredible gigs to see around Brighton, I made sure I was at the three-day Triptych event at The Hope & Ruin.
Organised by Love Thy Neighbour, each day had a theme that was represented by the artists on the bill. Day one showcased some of the glittering lo-fi music coming out of Brighton. Day two featured some of the most magnificent electro-pop bands in town. Day three brought together the more mind melting experimental electronic music for which Brighton has been getting a mighty reputation for. Yet, the best thing about this Triptych event was, not only three amazing nights of local live music, Love Thy Neighbour had also put together three very special limited edition EPs featuring new songs from all of the acts on the line-up as well as illustrations by Billy Mather.
Triptych 1 started with a very warm welcome from LC Pumpkin. Having listened to their music online before the event, it felt like I knew what I was about to experience – impulsive, eccentric and melodic music that’s reminiscent of Beck’s early material. What I didn’t expect is that LC Pumpkin is incredibly and impressively a one-man band! One man on stage with his vocals, a harmonica, a modified banjo with two pick-ups (one for the bass string and the other for the rest of the strings) which also had a plastic arm to continually hit a sample pad, that were all performed at the same time. It’s safe to say the crowd loved it – at times it was joyful, at others wistful, but throughout it was hugely enjoyable.
Next on was Garden Centre. The gangly guitars along with the phenomenal falsetto vocals from their lead singer was surreal but very endearing. Songs about different cups of water or urinals typifies the carefree nature of the band and that you shouldn’t take their music too seriously. So there was no need to overthink, only to let yourself bob around on the spot to Garden Centre’s playful rhythms and enjoy yourself, which I certainly did.
Headlining was perhaps the most hyped band in Brighton – Porridge Radio. Again their DIY nature is something you don’t want to take too seriously, but with eloquent lyrics about the human psyche sitting on top of the lo-fi melodies, you quickly become completely captivated with Porridge Radio’s music. Songs about awkwardness, self-doubt and personal struggle created an atmosphere of self-contemplation – it was cathartic and glorious. Having three female vocalists, with Dana’s powerful voice being an incredible lead, does work wonders for the five-piece, but the band are completely solid in all areas with the drummer and guitarist deserving a fine mention as well.
Triptych 2 had the lovely sounds of KUB to open the event. Formally of DIY dreamy pop trio Us Baby Bear Bones, Daisy Emily Warne’s KUB project brings together dreamy atmospheric with danceable electro pop swagger. This marriage of emotional electronics with Daisy’s angelic vocal is a beautiful relationship indeed, switching between dark bassy beats that rippled through the crowd and delicate pop intricacies that have you humming her songs throughout the interval.
Taking the middle slot was Dog In The Snow, one of our favourites ever since the release of the Uncanny Valley EP back in 2015. For the most of 2016 we haven’t seen much of Dog In The Snow due to their musical mastermind (Helen Ganya Brown) being on tour with Fear Of Men, so to hear a set full of new fantastic material sure put a smile on our faces. Now performing solo, Helen took to the stage with her voice, a sample pad and her guitar, to create her intriguing off-kilter alt-electronica. The otherworldly waves of layering atmospherics that went between intense highs and sombre lows, put together with Helen’s incessantly arresting vocal blissfully swelling across the room, gave the audience a musical feast.
Having kept a relatively low profile since the release of the brilliant In, Around The Moments LP, it was a rare treat to have GAPS headline, and the excited Friday night crowd made sure they knew it. Playing their electro folk combo, progressive beats mixed with spacious organic rhythms of acoustic loops to form the perfect concept and created the perfect sound. Rachel’s soulful vocals atop of the pulsing melodies were magnificent, Ed’s drumming perfectly flowed with the natural ebb of their music – it was a monumental return from GAPS. After playing a set full of unreleased gems, we are excited, and sure hope there are new releases on the near horizon.
Triptych 3 was an electronic xxx. This Space Prog trio Merlin Tonto are one of the best bands in Brighton at the moment and anyone who witnessed their EP launch gig at the Green Door Store last year will testify this. After kicking off their set with an as yet unnamed track, they launched into ‘Forest Primeval’ which opened with a stuttering electro bassline, and glacial synths exploding from the PA system. As the tension slowly built, and built, the music took on a hypnotic vibe and when the drums kicked in nothing mattered. Merlin Tonto closed their set with ‘Sentinel Canyon’, a new song that features on the Triptych 8” record, and it had the room locked in a trance – the ideal way to close their set.
After a short break Eva Bowan took to the stage. Bowan’s set was full of ambient noises, glitchly electronics, subtle breakbeats and ethereal vocals. Her set felt like one long celestial soundscape which rose and fell, rather than a series of well thought out songs connected with an overall theme/motif. Yes, it was a pleasant listen, but at times there wasn’t much to grab hold of, apart from bird sounds or diaphanous vocal warm up exercises. Eva Bowan’s music may sound great on record, but live it certainly lacked a punch.
Immersion closed the three-day event with a set that was made up of their latest release Analogue Creatures. Their brand of analogue pulsating electronic music was in stark contrast to Bowan’s. While hers had the consistency of mist and fog, Immersion’s was something you could see and grab hold of. The music they made was reminiscent of Kraftwerk and Can, but with a splattering of the Residents thrown in for fun. As their set undulated and surged toward its conclusion, it felt like it had finished far too soon. And then the house lights came up and it was time to face the elements again, after being cocooned in a world of vero electronics.
Iain Lauder & Nick Roseblade