Take A Worm For A Walk Week have the reputation of perverted lions – unsettling, dangerous - but tonight they’re eccentric puppy-dogs. They’re still 18-certificated (their “romantic song” comes illustrated with puerile hand gestures as Joe Quimby fists his own hand-gina), but more fun than neophytes might expect.
The Unwinding Hours have their own buzz to live up to. Having been rapturously received in these pages and elsewhere, it’s disappointing to hear their set sag in the middle. But at either end there’s gold, not least the most crushing example of the quiet-LOUD switcheroo heard in a long while. While not quite Astounding and Amazing in this setting, The Unwinding Hours remain Very Good.
Tonight, The Twilight Sad are brought to you using ‘quadraphonic sound’ (that’s ‘surround sound’ for those feart of excess syllables). Before they take the stage, voices and distortion encircle the audience like a wagon train attack. It bodes well, but once underway, things sound pretty standard from where I’m situated (though the effect probably depends on location – I’m informed later that standing too close to the rear speakers ain't pleasant). But if the sound setup is anticlimactic, the performance is anything but. Singer James Graham expresses humble gratitude, but his modesty is the only chink in their cocksure composure. From Reflection of the Television’s mantras to a colossal closing Cold Days From the Bird House, they brace and stir. Cleaving dense noise into rousing melody, they validate every laudation to date and earn a few more in the process.
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