Flowers of Evil and Nikki & The Waves sat proudly atop their eclectic line-up to dance the night away - and forget about the England result.
I was very excited about this show, it being the first live review for Bad Taste, and it felt sort of momentous. Oscar & Nikki very kindly asked me down to their combined launch show for Cherry AID, after we kind of gushed over it earlier this month.
Having never ventured into Deansgate Mews, I found myself (after a fair bit of searching) in a bright little venue inside the complex opposite the Hilton in Spinningfields. It's a pretty intimate setting, which slowly filtered in the cold heads of Manchester, after a bitter day of snow - and football.
I was a little out the way from the venues I was used to around the city, but was close enough to a nice Italian place who managed to fit me in for a pizza and a glass of wine before I headed in. I went and chatted to people as the bands soundchecked and got ready. There was a relaxed atmosphere and I felt like everyone was just there for good vibes.
Those good vibes kept coming; through cold weather and missed penalties. Even the communal updates on the game between sets couldn't keep us down.
Seems all we needed was some Cherry-AID.
Act One: itsnatevendahk
The night commenced with a mix of sampled noise and live instruments, the trio grooving along quite nicely. Their use of space and silence was effective, keeping the audience pulled in. Ticking a box I often watch for, drummer Fyn Dobson rarely complicated the soundscape. The groove confidently sauntered, hand in hand with the bass-line at all times, a constant anchor for everything around it. Harmonically quite jazzy, the addition of the sample pad allowed their sound to feel like the arrangements behind classic Tribe and Pharcyde tracks. Starting with some jazz-pop and ending with more Avant-Garde noise, it didn't really stutter too much, keeping the everything pretty tight - considering Katie Pham was rocking a fretless bass she admitted to me she wasn't particularly familiar with using... Personally, I think a more permanent keyboard or rhythm guitar presence might benefit the live sound, as sometimes there's a lack of depth that detracts a bit from the overall experience until it kicks back in.
However, the trio tend to base themselves around sampled Soundcloud demos and this does come through. The songs are clearly well crafted and their low key stage presence doesn't detract from the fact they're clearly having quite a lot of fun. I think they lost a bit of energy towards the end and meandered a tiny bit but, god, that rhythm section is eye-rollingly funky.
Act Two: diekaidie
Sharing lead vocal duties throughout the set, diekaidie stepped it up a notch. I'd class it as industrial noise with strong pop/rock vocals. Guitarist Murph's singing was sometimes Buckley-ish and then a little heavier and throatier. Emma Kirsch's was more all-out Hayley Williams, belting beautifully over some really interesting harmonic ideas. Again, there was a combination of sample pads, drum machines and live instruments. It was texturally richer than dahk with more members and much heavier arrangements. I was almost getting an early 2000s emo vibe but with Wombats-y indie guitar lines and heavy industrial breaks. Mixing it up with the time signatures as well gave it a definite Midwest flavour. Murph had a bit of the energy of the late great Wilko Johnson which drew the eye but really the focal point amongst all the noise was Kirsch. I think she had a slightly better stage presence without trying quite as hard. Her vocals just cut through better and had a more emotional impact. They were rhythmically interesting, the drum and bass influences hitting hard. I couldn't help but be physically moved a bit and kept visualising them at festivals, or at least a much darker venue with some crazier lighting. The bright, airy room didn't quite do them justice.
As a side-note, I've noticed that in a lot of great bands there's always an unassuming member just absolutely wrecking the fuck out of their instrument and providing insanely interesting stuff. A Graham Coxon, an Ed O'Brien. There was one here in the form of guitarist Reuben. The bassist also just kept to himself, providing the floor on which the rest of the group ran and jumped about. I enjoyed it immensely.
Act Three: Nikki & The Waves
Nikki and her Waves just don't disappoint. They delivered some great bits of keyboard work, funky hi-hat patterns and scratchy guitars. And you just can't go wrong with slapping da bass. Opening with an ode to the corduroy trouser, they brought the chilled music student house party vibes. Interestingly, they also ended on the topic of dungarees and, despite Nikki deciding to have an onstage battle with hoodie for a couple of minutes, they're clearly into their clothes. They comprise all the feel-good instruments. Trumpets = good (although I'm always conscious in small live settings that horns don't need much mic-ing up!), stabby keys and synths - and a guitar with the word 'boobies' stickered down the fretboard? That will never not be funny. It was a set of infectious funk pop, with simple hooks about love, life, and finding people 'lame'. The Waves are a really tight band and the set was a light-hearted departure from the preceding bands. Nikki is an joyously engaging frontwoman, charming the audience and is somehow both shy and confident at the same time. Between songs she's quiet, but comes alive in an understated way once the music around her begins. You can't beat a ripping guitar solo to end a set with everyone dancing, either.
Act Four: Flowers Of Evil
As train travel becomes increasingly more frustrating, and the night experienced some technical setbacks, I realised I might have to cut this one short. I was pretty gutted, FOE being one of the main reasons I came down to the show. Nevertheless, what I caught of Oscar & co. was as entertaining as I knew it would be. His delivery is swaggering and engaging, and the instruments around his vocals swelled up and filled the space well. I managed to catch a small amount of Cherry-AID which sounded even better than on record, which is pretty rare for a track that prides itself on sounding crisp and tight. However, as with all the acts tonight, FOE were nothing if not tight. I did see that The Waves joined them on stage to play a cover of Lizzo's About Damn Time which fit their sound perfectly. The crowd were really up for this set, which made it even more frustrating for me to have to make the decision to leave.
I endeavour to see them again, anyway. No shade to any rail workers, you gotta do what you gotta do.
General Musings
The merch was well-thought out, instead of simply T-shirts and stickers there were also tote bags (a band after my own heart!) and little bottles of the aforementioned Cherry-AID. Little touches like this give gigs a homely feel, like you're part of the whole experience.
Sometimes the merch stand can be daunting for audience members, with people feeling awkwardly obliged to support artists because of the state of the grassroots scene despite the quality of the products, so hats off to Flowers of Evil & co. for taking the time to make merchandise their audience will actually want. I kicked myself a bit on the way home because I realised I'd forgotten my bottle of Cherry-AID. Ffs.
Low Four itself is a friendly, well-lit space but the pillar in the middle reduces the visibility and a little bit of the sound quality. The stage area is level with the audience, giving them a more immersive experience and allows the bands to move around freely. Diekaidie's Emma Kirsch utilised this well, darting in and out of us while encouraging more dancing. While combined male and female toilets are a great idea (what the fuck is gender anyway) it doesn't help queuing situations... but altogether it's a great little venue! Albeit a little hard to find.
I left with this feeling I'd been part of a close-knit community, friends who were all coming together in a supportive way for a love of live music and love of the individuals playing it. Everyone I spoke to was passionate about music in some way. A small crowd, but you didn't feel it. The vibes were always there.
I then speed-walked for the last train home. I'd even forgotten about the football.
8/10
Artist Socials:
Other Socials:
Bitch Palace Promotions (inclusive promotion company)
Pezzo Creative (Cherry-AID artwork designer)
Low Four Studio (venue)
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