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By Dalty, Thursday 30th September 2004 10.31pm (2501 views)
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Glasswerk amd VmanEvents IN THE CITY @ Dry Bar, Manchester
Date: 17th September 2004
Support: Guests
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The annual love-in between Manchester and the music industry, In The City spreads to around sixty venues across six days. My first taste of it is on the Saturday, midway through a three-day two-stage Glasswerk promoted line-up at the famous Dry Bar.
Solo artist Haylie Glennie-Smith eases the day in with a short set of pleasant folk songs. Endearing rather than charismatic and blessed with a voice that veers from seductive to a throaty bellow, Haylie comes across as a less irritating version of Dolores from the Cranberries. The songs are all simple and derivative, but no less charming for that.
Bradford’s Seven Hours appear next and provide instant variety with their grimy funk rock. Like a council estate RHCP, twangy bass and skanking guitar mix with funky drums to create a heady musical blend. The singer too has a strong voice, though he’d do well to tone down the cod-American accent, and there is enough potential shown in an inconsistent set to mark them down as ones to watch.
The second folk solo artist of the day, King St Hobo brings a different type of folk music, with more intricate and dynamic guitar playing. His voice is strongly reminiscent of David Gray, yet his set lacks punch and largely washes over a steadily rising crowd.
Sugar Shack Records signings The Maker follow, but the early part of their set is dogged by a poor sound mix, taking the edge off their wall of sound indie-rock. Things improve by the time of their penultimate number, a thumping cousin of DIV’s Dirge when they introduce an electronic edge to their sound and points the way forward for the band.
The Second Floor provide the first consistently good set of the day. Raw yet intricate, they play a passionate, classy brand of atmospheric rock n’ roll. With a set ranging from pounding rockers to psychedelic wig-outs, there is much to love here.
The high standard is maintained by the excellent Lyca Sleep. Allying a spare intense sound with genuine stage presence, they produce an entrancing set. Sounding similar to early Verve, there is more than enough to suggest they can step out of the shadow of their influences and make waves of their own.
Power-trio Marlin come on next and play a set of rock that relies heavier on perspiration than inspiration. Though they play with passion and enthusiasm, the tunes are too pedestrian to really take off and they fail to make much impression.
I assumed Steve Kennedy would be another folksy solo artist, but they appear as a band and though the music could loosely be described as folk, there is too much else going on to label under one genre. A mix of lo-fi, bluesy, industrial, folksy funk-rock, they produce an intoxicating sound and are without doubt the most original band of the day.
Led by a frontman who looks like he could start a fight in an empty room, The Suzukis assault the crowd with their aggressive post-punk racket. A refreshing, confrontational band, their debauched rock n’ roll is underpinned with some focussed, dynamic playing that keeps things together to keep them from going totally off the rails.
Accrington sextet Maupa headline and play a set of psychedelic, punky folk-rock that ends the day nicely. Like The Coral, the band seem to live in their own world where the idea of being “cool” or following trends is rightly not on the agenda and doing your own thing out of the constraints of being a typical band is. They seem to almost sum up an enjoyably diverse day of music that establishes Glasswerk as a vital presence at In The City. Bring on the class of 2005!
You can catch Maupa at tHE gREAT wHITE chOCOLATE dEBATE @ Jabez Clegg, Manchester, on Oct 21st. |
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