Aural Aggravation

Christopher Nosnibor

Thank fuck that not everything has been cancelled this week. Not everyone wants to show ‘respect’ by suspending al, activity to watch tributes 24/7 on every TV channel. Monarchist or not, what’s important at any time of trouble is a sense of community, and anyone looking for an example of something that makes our country great – and there are precious few right now, for a great many – it’s a music scene that continues to thrive despite everything that’s happened in recent years. The Brudenell, in particular, represents the best of everything that can be good about people, community, and the therapeutic benefits of music, particularly in a live setting.

The place is bustling with Sisters, Mission, and Bauhaus T-shirts, and Ashford and Simpson are playing over the PA. My pocket smells of the samosa from Abu Bakir, the Asian supermarket next door, that I’ve got stashed for on the train home. This is all good; it’s all so very Leeds, so very Brudenell as I mind my own business with a £3.90 pint of local ale.

I’m as excited for B-Movie as the headliners, having been introduced to them sometime in the late 80s while in my mid-teens. Admittedly, I hadn’t appreciated that they’d been active in some capacity since 2011, meaning they’ve remained an act I never expected to see live. On top of that, the last time I saw Salvation was at Leeds Met at the March Violets reunion gig in December 2007. It’s clear I’m certainly not alone in being revved at the prospect of this show for the launch of the vinyl edition of We Gave You Diamonds… Live at De Casino!.

Loungewear are an unknown quantity, and sadly many punters remain in the bar for their set, during which they deliver a neat set of layered, jangly dream pop that’s a bit shoegaze, with a dash of The Twilight Sad, and at the same time very Leeds. There’s not much movement on stage, but it kinda works in context: they’ve got decent songs and significant potential.

Loungewear

B-Movie have a lot of synths, and are a fair bit slicker than their back in the day sound. As a duo, comprising original front man Steve Hovington, and keyboardist Black Marine, they’ve revamped the songs and initially, it’s simply good to hear the songs being played. ‘This Still Life’ lands second in the set, stripped back and slowed down, brooding, gothic, and it’s well executed and suiting the arrangement. But while the performance is solid, something is sadly lacking, namely a band, and the set rapidly falls to a tedious sameness.

B-Movie

A slow and super-croony ‘Marilyn Dream’ is led by dripping piano. In fairness, ‘Institution Walls’ works well as a drama-laden, high-tension gothic horror piece, until you remember how it used to sound, at which point it becomes slightly disappointing. ‘Nowhere Girl’ receives similar treatment. It’s a genuinely classic tune, but in this format is sadly lacking, and the volume of chatter says the audience at large aren’t exactly enthralled, either. As much as the crowd may be ageing, it looks like lounge goth is never going to catch on with the old diehards, especially with an overlong set. Half an hour would have been plenty. They close with a similarly disappointing rendition of ‘Remembrance Day’. It makes sense that Hovington, who was never the most melodic singer, should work within his range, but B-Movie songs always centred around the pace and the dynamic, and tonight they have neither.

Salvation set up to Spiringsteen’s ‘Tunnel of Love’ and I’m getting peckish for the samosas, but instead grab another pint.

There’s gothbird mumdancing galore from the first bar as Salvation kick off with ‘All and More’. The sequenced bass groove is solid as the drum machine kicks along nicely. There are people up on shoulders, spreading arms and singing back every word with gusto just two songs in, and it’s a proper old-school Leeds goth party. He may resemble Mark Kermode these days, but in contrast to Steve Hovington, Danny Mass’ is still a compelling front man, and his voice hasn’t aged a day, and he belts the songs out sounding exactly as they sounded on the original eighties releases, and as they have live in the 90s and 00s and on the new live album, and there’s no two ways about it, they’re a strong live act.

‘Puppet Master,’ the first of a handful of tracks from the 1987 debut album Diamonds are Forever goes down a storm before the spindly indie goth crossover of ‘The Shining’. The two guitars intertwine magnificently, and Ben’s lead guitar work is excellent, tight but delicate.

Salvation

Mid set, after ‘She’s an Island’ they bring on live bass and drums for the second half, in recognition of the lineup that features on the album recorded on tour with The Mission, starting with ‘Sunshine Superman’, with flipside ‘Payola’ also getting an airing. It’s more overtly ‘rock’ and brings a very different kind of energy, not least of all with the extra bodies and movement on stage.

Salvation

Sadly, I seems like they’re never going to go near the songs from the debut 12” on Merciful Release, but arguably, it was a different time and a different sound that wouldn’t sit with the psychedelic indie sound of the rest of the set.

Limited train services back to York meant I had to forgo the end of the set, which makes for a bit of a lame end to a review, and while I’ll spare the rant about the impact of privatisation and the capitalism of diminishing returns, that’s the reality of attending live shows even in nearby cities, and as much as I’m here to report on shows, I’m also interested in the how we experience music as part of life, and its place in culture and society. The journey home was shit and the train delayed by half an hour, but what matters is that Salvation were great, and the vibe in the room was truly wonderful. Old goths – they’re a decent bunch, you know.