Here I am
in Su Casa yet again waiting for Little Fire to introduce the line up
for the night and perform a few of his own songs.
As usual
words tumble through my head as I consider how best to try and put
across how the atmosphere makes me feel, about how the moment is
heavy with untold promises of what is to come, but no matter how many
descriptive lines come to mind I'm aware that I have written about Su
Casa, Little Fire and Alan Frew so many times now that I may be in
danger of repeating myself.
Similarly
to how I previously mentioned that Little Fire shakes his material up
on a weekly basis to freshen the approach I am going to have to do
something like that to.
Yet here
I am sitting at the keyboard letting words just trip from my head to
my hands and onto the screen.
There's
no plan, no guideline, no template for me to strictly adhere to.
I keep
coming up with one angle after another, but I'm over thinking it.
So
instead all I am going to do is let myself go and leave everything
that pours out unedited, and in that way I hope I can get across the
essence of the night.
I guess
the first thing that I should do is just tell you how Little Fire
makes me feel.
He makes
me feel warm.
His voice
has a rawness to it that shouldn't elicit a warm feeling, but there's
very little in it that is abrasive so it does the opposite of
expected.
There is
just enough grit to make it all sound heartfelt.
It's soft
warm molasses with crystallized sugar in it.
The
rawness could be the grain of sand waiting to become a pearl in the
embrace of the oyster.
There's
some alchemy at play in how he takes the raw material and melds it
into something beautiful.
He only
ever sings about one thing.
Love.
Positive
tales of love sought, love found and the unknown future of two people
in love.
Some may
think that this is nothing new, but there's a reason why we have
written about, and sung about, love since the dawning of time.
It's
because apart from birth, taxes and death it is the one thing that
everyone shares.
We all
have experience of it in some capacity and Little Fire evokes those
feelings and seduces us through the familiarity of what he sings
about.
Is it a
clever ploy on his part?
Is he
even aware of the possibility of an angle on it?
I
sincerely doubt it.
Witness
one single solitary performance and you can tell in your gut that
what he does is just express himself in as heartfelt way as he
possibly can.
What more
could ever be expected from an artist?
Once
Little Fire finishes there's a stitch in time.
We slip
through a wormhole and find ourselves in the company of Jiezuberband.
Like
aliens from out there on the other side of the universe it sounds
like they have been listening to the sounds from earth for centuries
and weaved a patchwork quilt of it all together, and now consider
themselves very clever for recreating our music.
The
reality is that it sounds nothing like what we do.
Bits of
jazz wrestles with tribal rhythms, a celtic influence manages to hold
some gospel down for the count of three and a submission. The blues
keep making an appearance ringside and the audience is made up of
snippets of every single genre that has ever managed to get a toe
hold in our subconscious.
Often
mentioned as psychedelic space rockers it's apparent that they could
well be if they were plugged in.
Possibly
like a cross between Hawkwind and the Afro Celt Sound System, but
acoustically it's a whole different sound, and I suspect that due to
the free flow nature of the band that you could see then five times
and never really get the same performance repeated.
Within
what they do is a flavour of what keeps bringing me back to Su Casa.
It's the
eclecticism of the artists that appear.
If
someone solely gravitates to one genre then they will often enough
find something they like going on, but Su Casa is a haven for real
music fans of all ages.
Open
minded people who are willing to experience whatever is thrown at
them find a home there, and Jiezuberband are the sort of band that
fit into that inclusive ethos of experimentation.
So how do
you really describe such a multifaceted band?
I guess
you don't.
Instead
you just throw everything into the mix and then tell someone that
they really had to be there to get it.
Time for
apologies.
I missed
Laura Carswell, but Kel didn't and a review will either be added or
put up as a stand alone update.
Steve
Dunn was the surprise of the evening.
He looked
shell shocked, the rabbit in the headlights as he stood up and
strapped his guitar on..........and then he sang.
In that
instant he was transformed.
The
nerves vanished and in there place was a real performance.
There's
two people behind the mic occupying the same body.
It works
though. The chemistry of the yin and yang is apparent.
One
exists with the other.
It's just
that in Steve's case they are very clearly defined.
Songs
finish and one Steve reveals himself and then when he closes his eyes
to play his doppelgänger takes his place.
Some
would say that he could be more relaxed and that would balance how he
promotes himself to an audience, but I like both personas and he
isn't losing anything by showing some vulnerability.
Taking on
the penultimate spot was Chloe Simpson who seemed surprised at the
reception she got.
I've no
idea why though as she is yet another star in the making.
Her smile
illuminates the room and similar to Steve she doesn't seem to be
aware of how good she is.
There's a
hint of the quirkiness of Kate Nash, but while I've always considered
Ms Nash to be a bit of a one trick pony this isn't the case with
Chloe.
There's a
great deal more going on.
Her one
woman show is as accomplished as anyone who is gracing the worlds
largest stages and has a whole career behind them.
Su Casa
seem to be making a name for themselves in finding precocious talent
and propelling them into the consciousness of Ayrshires music fans.
First
Anna Sweeney and now Chloe Simpson.
While I
was impressed with all the material that she played it was her cover
of The Courteeners song Not Nineteen Forever that grabbed me and spun
me straight back to seeing the band in a tent in Hyde Park.
It wasn't
a straight cover, but the same passion was there and for that it has
to be applauded.
Rooftops
are made for shouting this girls talents from.
Closing
the night was Alan Frew.
He's a
musicians musician and while I am not one I often find myself
transfixed watching his fingers adding weight to the strings on the
fret and picking away at them on the body.
I listen
to the sounds and I don't really understand how it is done, but my
ignorance isn't a barrier to my enjoyment.
As the
night is slowly drawing to a close Alan plays a few songs from his
own debut album that spread out and infuse the room with a sense of
camaraderie.
It's
probably because I have heard them a few times now that I associate
them with Su Casa, but when he plays his own material it just seems
to fit.
Then just
as I was getting comfortable and letting the music wash over me he
burst into the Johnny Cash hit Folsom Prison Blues that he then
manages to effortlessly morph into Junior Parkers Mystery Train.
It's a
move that wouldn't be out of place getting dragged out for the
patrons of a juke joint circa 1955.
I suppose
you could say if Carlsberg made coffee shops................
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