Mark and the Mystics - Su Casa - 25/02/12 (Ayr)

It seems that it's been a long and difficult week for everyone I know.
So how better to finish it than with a trip to Su Casa in Ayr to see the début gig of Mark and the Mystics.
Well that was the plan, but it wouldn't be a night out without at least one spanner being thrown in the works.
This time it was that Kelly, Claire, and myself had travelled to a small place called Crookedholm to collect our brother in musical appreciation who is otherwise known as Robbie Mills.
Unfortunately Robbie wasn't there.
He was hanging about in a car park in our home town and waiting patiently for us to pick him up.
It was a simple mistake of some crossed wires, or as we would say locally 'numpties with tatties in their ears' but after a few cryptic text messages back and forth we were all reunited and still managed to get to Su Casa in plenty of time to catch Trusty and the Foe who were the first act of the night.
I've seen them a few times now and they've never failed to impress me, but tonight everything seemed to take huge leap forward.
It wasn't that they were playing better, but instead that the sound guy nailed it.
Every single note from their guitars weaved in and out with perfect clarity, and the vocals were perfectly balanced in the mix.
This was exactly how Trusty and the Foe should sound.
Imagine if Simon and Garfunkel were in their early twenties and just starting to play coffee shops right now.
If you can manage to wrap your head around that then you wont be far off from grasping where Trusty and the Foe are coming from.
It was a sublime set of folk inspired music and as the audience were appreciatively quiet when they were playing it made it all the more special.
Following Trusty and the Foe was Julia Doogan who has a lovely soft voice that expresses some timidity without sounding fragile or weak.
This was my first experience of her performing and I was quietly impressed with her folk pop songs.
There did appear to be some nerves on show, but in a way it allowed the audience to pull for her.
To quietly urge her on by allowing the atmosphere to be quietly supportive.
It all made for a very lovely experience.
Next on the bill was to be Melisa Kelly and her Harmless Thieves who have now appeared so often at Su Casa that they could be considered the house band, but similar to a few other Ayrshire acts you can never tire of seeing them play as every performance is different.
This time the Harmless Thieves are missing Jamie on Cajon, but are bolstered with a a couple of members who I've not seen play with them before.
One on saxophone and the other on acoustic guitar.
The dropping of one instrument and the addition of two more alters the sound dramatically, but it's not that it sounds better or worse, just different again.
Unsurprisingly the set is shockingly entertaining, and it will never get old reiterating what a soulful and barely tamed vocal delivery that Melisa has.
She could sing the phone book and still enthral an audience.
Mark and the Mystics, the headlining act of the evening, very obviously had to pull something rather special out of the bag to follow Melisa and her Harmless Thieves, but that's exactly what they did.
I was under the impression that what we were going to see would be the usual front man and backing band set up, but instead what we got was Mark Rafferty, Teri Booth and Terry Balfour, displaying their individual talents together as they effortlessly swapped instruments and the taking on of the role of lead vocalists.
It's difficult to put a finger on how they did it, but something that could have been a very disjointed affair was far from it.
As instruments changed hands and the differences between vocal deliveries became apparent it could easily have lent itself to soaring highs and crashing lulls in the performance, but there simply wasn't a hint of that.
Instead what we got to witness was three fine musicians managing to convey a great deal of camaraderie, and in doing so elevating what could be considered a jam session to something much more appealing.
It all sounds polished, but also organic. A finely balanced performance.
Even the changing of seats and minor technical hiccups come across as part of the performance as Mark uses them to display a quick and sharp wit that some stand up comedians could learn from.
To say that I enjoyed them would be an understatement.
I'd happily part with some hard earned cash to see them all individually never mind pay a paltry five pounds to see them all.
It's going to be interesting to see what they come up with in the studio and how they will be able to convey what they do in a live setting.
Su Casa host Little Fire was the man to finish the night off and that he did in fine style.
Recently he supported The Secret Sisters on their Celtic Connections appearance in Glasgow and later this year he has secured the support slot to Joan Armatrading.
So things are going rather well for him and once he starts singing his songs it becomes obvious why.
Everything revolves around the well trodden path of the boy meets girl story, but the reason that path is so well trodden is that the subject material is timeless and as long as it is put out there with passion then no one will tire of it, and that's what Little Dire does.
A fitting end to yet another great night in Su Casa.
February has just delivered one excellent gig after another. March has a lot to live up to.

Brown Bear and the Bandits/Mechanical Smile/Athos/Trusty and the Foe/Sam Christison - Su Casa (6/10/11)

Su Casa was gridlocked.
For a cold and damp Thursday night this flies in the face of the normal midweek turn out for a gig.
Once every seat had been taken and the remaining gaps in the room had rapidly filled with standing room only bodies a young Sam Christison took to the microphone to entertain what was literally a captive audience.
Initially over the course of his first song I was unimpressed as the vocals seemed at odds to the self penned song.
That's actually pretty unusual as who knows how to best sing a song other than the person who wrote it?
Thankfully he rolled into a cover song to follow it and in doing so managed to pull things back a bit.
Maybe it was just a case of opening nerves that sabotaged the first song as when he approached the third track, and second original of the night, everything managed to click into place.
There's some nice guitar work on display, some Dylanesque harmonica and a good grounding in providing a performance.
Yet another young artist to keep an eye on that the Su Casa nights throw into the public eye.
Next was an unannounced set from Trusty and the Foe and it is safe to say that familiarity does not breed contempt. In fact the opposite is true as I'm quickly becoming increasingly enamoured with their soft take on indie folk.
The vocals seem to float on top of the finger picking guitar work and while what they do may not appeal to a crowd looking to rock out it is still a thing of sublime beauty.
It's about time they got into a studio and laid down some tracks, and the sooner the better in my opinion.
Athos (who I'd seen playing an accomplished electric set a few weeks ago in the Monkey Bar in Kilmarnock) set up next to do their very first acoustic show and it was a bit of a game of two halves.
The problem is that the acoustic side of things sounds like a work in progress. The first three songs were nearly there, but falling short of nailing it.
It was only midway through the second song that I thought I could put my finger on what was missing and that was the singer loosening up a bit and letting go with a bit more of a roar.
This guy has a voice. I've heard it, but in trying to convert what they do to an acoustic setting he seemed to be trying to interpret it with a different vocal interpretation and it was only partially working
I'd like to see them play acoustically six months from now as I reckon that once they are comfortable with the format it will deliver huge dividends.
The second half of their set seen them becoming more comfortable and there was a definite light at the end of the tunnel.
It's just a bit out of reach at the moment.
Mechanical Smile who were playing this gig as the second night of their Scottish tour were the band who I was very keen to see, and along with Brown Bear the reason why I made the trip to Su Casa.
The last time I seen them live I felt that all the parts were in place, but similarly to Athos acoustically that they were within reach of the prize but falling short of grabbing it.
Now all these months down the line and with a fantastic ep tucked under their belts and loads of gigs ground out they have reached the point of having done that and bought the t-shirt.
All the promise I felt was there has now been delivered upon.
Strong material, tight musicianship and best of all the attitude of a band that know what they are doing and have their eyes set on a bigger and better future.
These guys are far more than a post grunge rock act as their acoustic set proves.
As with all bands a great deal of effort is put into getting a foot on the bottom rung of the music business, and all the effort from Mechanical Smile has brought them to that point right now.
It's going to be interesting to see if they can start climbing higher now.
Last band of the evening was the much lauded Brown Bear and the Bandit.
A band that I seem to have managed to miss again and again until now.
From the moment that the first chord was struck it was very obvious that their reputation as a band to see was well founded. It's an electrifying experience that deserves more than the usual superlative praise that can be heaped on a band.
The guitar, bass and cajón drum is used to mix a heady brew of sound and it's all delivered with a bit of an anarchic edge.
Styles and genres are all there for the picking and the band are elbow deep in bringing it all to the table to flavour their songs.
Cleticindiefolkpunkpopandrollagogo.
This is a band that if there was any justice would be featuring heavily in all the 'bands to watch in 2012' lists that proliferate in the 'must read to be classed as cool' magazines, but the main difference from the rest mentioned is that they they really are the band to watch.
So bring on 2012. Brown Bear and the Bandits are ready. Are you?
http://soundcloud.com/brownbearandthebandits
Truth or Dare by brownbearandthebandits