Bill Ryder-Jones Salem Rages Loka Lizzie Nunnery Bill ... - Bido Lito!

etween the brisker songs and the
softer, more relaxed tracks. Like a ball
of burning passion, Marcus Foster’s
somewhat unorthodox shrieking is a
unique trait that belies his beautifully
written songs. I Don’t Need To Lose
You To Know was especially insidechurning,
and brought beaming
smiles of pride to the faces of his
family members in the audience. And
right they were, too.
Undoubtedly the strongest line-up
for these MOJO free shows, SUMMER
CAMP were joined on their Thursday
night headline slot by STEALING
SHEEP (in sequins!), DOG IS DEAD
(with a sax!), BARBIESHOP (doing
covers!) and YES LORD SUGAR (“You’re
fired!”). A case of saving the best ‘til
last, this was an exercise in retroinfused
music making and some
lovely vintage dresses.
Fresh-faced Nottingham lads Dog
Is Dead took to the stage and and pushed
all the the right excitement buttons with
their perfectly-worked, mounting
guitar crescendos and clever use of
harmonies and and unashamed popharmony
hooks. But there was was no
taking away the limelight from
Summer Camp’s Elizabeth Sankey
and and Jeremy Warmsley, the indie
couple du jour, who began their set
in the audience, acoustic guitar and
Sankey’s piercingly pure voice rising
above the crowd. Back on stage, the
fitting teen pop culture images that
scrolled in the background were an
apt accompaniment accompaniment to the alluring alluring
glaze of the ’80s American-inspired,
synth-sprinkled pop found on debut debut
LP Welcome To Condale. The audience
packed in to MOJO were as besotted
with their new favourite band as the
two protagonists were with each
other, making for a wholesomely
uplifting uplifting slice of sunshine nostalgia..
LMW SPECIAL EVENTS
The promise of the hauntingly
good LANTERNS ON THE LAKE in the
muted ambience of Leaf was just
too much to turn down as LMW 2011
– in association with Mellowtone –
branched out from what had become
its home at MOJO. Suitably captivated
by the beautiful LAURA JAMES AND
THE LYRES, the audience was then
wooed in to a trance-like state by
Lanterns, with all eyes fixed on the
Geordie sextet throughout their set.
There was a breathtaking passion
about them when playing that had
to be seen to be believed: listening
to their Bella Union-released album
Gracious Tide, Take Me Home throws
up images of bleak chamber pop and
Sigur Ros, but as a live entity they
had more in common with Arcade
Fire or even Goldfrapp Goldfrapp (no, seriously).
Constantly Constantly swapping instruments,
and finding finding new new ways to draw draw sounds sounds
out of them, it was truly a pleasure to
behold behold in full flow.
The following night saw one
of the most ambitious events of
this year’s festival, as SEUN KUTI &
EGYPT 80 took over The Kazimier, in
association with Obscenic. The venue,
packed to (and probably beyond)
capacity, was bubbling with excited
chatter by way of anticipation, even
as UNITED VIBRATIONS were laying
down a wonderfully groove-based
blend of jazz, reggae and rock.
Seun Kuti waited in the wings, not
entering the fray until the moment
was just right, while the seasoned
performers of Egypt 80 were busy
laying down a hypnotically welllayered
groove for the arrival of the
new master. When Kuti appeared -
to rapturous applause - his presence
and personality was immediately
palpable without even a word
spoken. That the following two hours
passed in a blur of joyous euphoria
speaks volumes about the former
LIPA student who has effortlessly
stepped into his father’s shoes as
a musical tour de force. Barely ever
stopping, the rhythmic trance of the
music was punctuated by pounding
beats produced by the 18-strong
band and Kuti’s flagrant sax solos.
In terms of the excitement of live
performance it absolutely does not
get better than that; an experience
that will be forever etched into the