Anne Clark/Eyeless
In Gaza/Cult With No Name
The Garage, London
- 12 April 2014
"One of the best shows I have ever seen"
I
have to say I have been a fan of Anne Clark for many, many years and
when I heard she was playing in London, I had to go and see her. There
was a doubt in my mind as to if her performances would be as good as of
old, but still the opportunity was too good to miss.
The first act on stage was Cult
With No Name,
and this was not the first time I have seen this band in recent years,
and once again they gave an excellent performance and both the
Keyboards and Vocals were delivered with aplomb. I think the name of
this band is most apt as it is difficult to classify their music,
technically a synth duo, but not like any other around, I am always
impressed by their musicality but for me they neither hit the harder
edge of EDM or the more dance sound of synth pop. They are always a
band I am more than happy to see as a support act, but not sure I would
see them as a headliner. 6/10
The next act was by Eyeless
in Gaza,
a group of eccentric multi-instrumentalists which I found fascinating,
as they switch musical styles and instrument. A highlight for me was
when they used an EDP Wasp synth on stage, the first time I have ever
seen one used live, and I was very impressed to see someone use this
strange device live (I want one). Whilst again not quiet my normal
musical taste, I really enjoyed them and would go to see them again
without hesitation. 7/10
Finally
Anne Clark and
Herr B, It’s been over 25 years since I was last at an
Anne Clark gig, and was not sure how this performance would be compared
to
her previous line up with a full band. I need not have worried. Herr
B’s
electronics were superb and his reworking of old tracks did more than
justice to them (including the ones originally produced by John Foxx
and, from me, that is high praise indeed). Whilst Anne and I have both
gotten older since last I saw her, I was amazed at the amount of
passion
and drive with which she performed, there was always a glint in her eye
and she seemed to be totally involved in the music. She did some
reworked old classics, including two of my personal favourites Wallies and No Hope Road as well
as some of her more familiar
tracks Our
Darkness and Heaven.
She also played a number of tracks
off the two EP’s she has recorded with Herr B and these I would highly
recommend. She finished off with The Prayer from her
latest EP, which
she dedicated to the people of Brazil, as a Brazilian TV crew were
filming the entire show (lucky Brazilians). I have to say that Anne
Clark gave one of the best shows I have ever seen. 9/10.
Review+Photos:
Mark Smith