Celebrating Xtra Mile Recording‘s 20th birthday and raising funds for War Child. Could there be a more glorious gorgeously golden way to begin this Brit’s Week evening than the lyrical and thought provoking Jess Guise?
Starting with a simple 4-chord progression, Jess Guise soon shows us just how well she can play that guitar, adding intricate finger picking, crunchy diminished and suspended chords and gutsy, emotional strumming, which accompany her philosophical and at times, self-deprecating musings.
Jess’s clear, pure voice can also be haunting and intriguing as she reminisces through past and present emotions and shares tender life experiences with the increasingly attentive audience. Her second song, Brother in Arms is a melodic and fierce tribute to her dad; Jess uses compound time to communicate her intense feelings beautifully.
Jess’ lovely folk-pop voice is easy to absorb and as she moves from song to song, fully warmed up now, we can hear its versatility and impressive strength and depth across her wide range. Her lockdown song about love, High Enough, reminds us of our own simple, special, life-changing moments during that strange time and Jess brings to mind the poignancy of Joni Mitchell as her passion builds through increasing tempo and dynamics in the robust and uplifting The Boy and the Thief. Guise’s ability to connect to the all-style, all age audience in the beautiful SBE building is evident as her warming, soothing, passionate set comes to a fabulously felicitous finale.
The triangle of strength that is Berries bursts on stage, completely at home, and launches confidently into their engaging and forceful set. Holly, (lead guitar and vocals) Lauren (bass guitar and vocals) and drummer Lexi, take on this venue with intensity, control and connection. Their energy is palpable; they love what they do. The songs invariably start with a delicious spiralling guitar riff by Holly before multiplying into a punchy bass-line and an insistent, heavy drum beat.
Having heard Berries several times now, we thought Holly’s voice was louder, stronger, and filled with conviction this evening. Their set, which included Wall of Noise, Siren, We are Machines and Spiral was flawless in its execution; communication between the three clear and powerful, energy filling the Shepherd’s Bush Empire. Pace builds through each song with intense guitars and edgy vocals, multiplying the complex sound with hooks and motifs that develop and change throughout. We discover (in a wonderfully serendipitous way) that Lauren and her wife’s first dance at their wedding was to a Frank Turner song- and now here she is, sharing the magnificence of the O2 SBE with him. It’s going to be that kind of evening.
this was the hot sex pool of rock and roll that we needed right now"
We’ve heard a lot of hype about Pet Needs – Four lads, two guitars and a drum kit- an explosive combination who are ready to take on the world… Starting their fireball of a set with Lost Again, lead man Johnny Marriott shouts it loud and proud, bounces and jumps his way around the stage with incredible, infectious vibrancy and the crowd absolutely f@$king love it.
These guys love being on stage. It feels like they have always been here – a burning energy with their own bespoke, highly distinctive sound"
Ibiza in Winter is up next- Johnny chatting away to the huge audience in the by now-rammed auditorium before a blistering whirl of anthemic chaos takes over. Now we understood the hype – the whirling of a frenzied Iggy, the defiant Ramonesque stance and dare I say a flash of Lux Interior… Johnny rocked and bopped and rolled over every inch of that floor, this was the hot sex pool of rock and roll that we needed right now.
Punk is not Dead only increases opportunities for the band’s natural, exciting showmanship, featuring George Marriott’s virtuosic guitar solo and Johnny flinging his arms around the stage in wild abandon. The addition of Jack (drums) and Rich (bass) to this raw, honest, punchy sound is nothing short of seismic.
Scratchcard is next, the wildly excited crowd roaring along, guitars played over heads, the lyrics as ever frank, self-deprecating, cutting. Bridget joins Pet Needs on stage for The Argument- pure theatre, musical duelling, a call and response of her screams versus his guttural shouts as they both jump simultaneously to the chorus.
Toothpaste and Get on the Roof bring this ball of furious, ecstatic, riotous vigour to a premature close- Pet Needs, we wanted more! You are invigorating and ferocious and everybody loved you!
Rapturous applause fills the Empire as the legend that is Frank Turner comes out on stage with his band the Sleeping Souls which consists of Ben Lloyd (guitar, mandolin), Tarrant Anderson (bass), Matt Nasir (piano, mandolin) and Callum Green (drums). The fans are giddy, wild and heady with adoration as a simple drone and Franks’ strong, passionate voice start his rewardingly lengthy set with Broken Piano- the first full performance with band of this song for nearly 10 years.
Frank and his tight-knit band fire through a rousing, big hearted, authentic set which encompasses the old as well as the new. The second song, Recovery, (his biggest selling song of all time) continues the ethereal start and many of his most loved songs follow to the evident bliss of the fans.
The joyous masses sing along to Get Better, The Way I Tend to Be, Photosynthesis, Haven’t been doing so well, Four Simple Words, song after well-loved song encompassing the space with their magnanimous, generous, compassionate lyrics and woven together in between with Frank’s inimitable magical words. The audience are spellbound- Frank understands, he shares, he excites and inspires.
Crowd surfers are passed to the front and there’s an air of pure elation. This eclectic audience are bound together by the golden threads of this punk-folk-indie sound; these words of compassion, resignation, truth, personal experience and fervour. This is what Frank Turner does best with such integrity and authenticity.
Frank is joined by his wife Jess to conclude a truly uplifting night, with words of ultimate joy and truth; (‘I Still Believe’)
Now who’d have thought that after all / Something as simple as rock ‘n’ roll would save us all”
Frank Turner and the Sleeping Souls played Shepherds Bush Empire on 9th February 2023.
Support from GUISE, Berries and PET NEEDS
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