Glorious purveyors of melodic folk/pop tinged with melancholy, Camera Obscura are a band who could never be accused of pushing the envelope, but whose masterful songcraft makes questions of ‘originality’ a rather moot point. And after last night show’s at the Koko, I can say (for the most part) they’re as, if not more, delightful live than on record. In a set that was at worse merely pleasant and at best sublime, ‘Let’s Get Out Of The Country’ and‘Books Written For Girls’ both stood out as highlights, rendered with a carefree energy miles away from the subdued production of the albums. But the night belonged, perhaps unsurprisingly, to the divine ‘Lloyd, I’m Ready To Be Heartbroken’ which was more wonderful than I could have hoped for- I honestly think it’s one of the loveliest pop tunes ever written. The band were also more lively than I was expecting; Tracy-Anne Campbell has far more charm than anyone who looks like a frumpy 50’s housewife has any right to be; just like her band, her understated demeanour belies an unexpected energy that’s very endearing. Shame about the encore then; a wistful cover of ABBA’s “Super Trouper” was cute, but ‘Eighties Fan’ was utterly deadened by the incomprehensible absence of live violin. That’s pretty much like performing ‘Wake Up’ with recorded “woooooah’s;” the strings are an integral part of the song and without them the band was basically reduced to jangling tambourines over a backing track- certainly not what a song of that calibre deserves. A disappointingly sour note to end an otherwise excellent show.
Nice supports though - Nic Dawson Kelly was a more interesting specimen of the acoustic troubadour breed that one is normally accustomed to, his histrionic, flamboyant vocals striking a intriguing middle ground between Rufus Wainwright and Carey Mercer. And given that I’ve been listening to their stuff a lot recently, Au Revoir Simone were a very welcome surprise; they played a pretty solid set, best during its more exuberant moments although the Earlies-ish prog track that rounded things off was really damn good. One of them did look a lot like an ex of mine though which was slightly perturbing…
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