Belle And Sebastian at End Of The Road 2013 - review Eels at End Of The Road 2013 – review Parquet Courts at End Of The Road 2013 – review Ethan Johns at End Of The Road 2013 - review Mike Heron & Trembling Bells at End Of The Road 2013 – review William Tyler at End Of The Road 2013 -...
Belle And Sebastian at End Of The Road 2013 – review
Eels at End Of The Road 2013 – review
Parquet Courts at End Of The Road 2013 – review
Ethan Johns at End Of The Road 2013 – review
Mike Heron & Trembling Bells at End Of The Road 2013 – review
William Tyler at End Of The Road 2013 – review
When David Byrne and Annie Clark got together to make an album you wouldn’t necessarily have imagined they’d be united by brass – especially the kind of brass parts that can only be described as ‘fidgety’.
Headlining the first night of 2013’s End Of The Road, though, the sound is somehow even more brass-based than on Love This Giant, which has its ups and downs. With just a drummer and a keyboardist alongside a massive eight brass players, it allows for some very singular arrangements, as on their version of X-Press 2’s Byrne-featuring “Lazy”.
The constant movement of the polyrhythmic Love This Giant brass parts becomes quite wearing, however, as it does on some of St Vincent’s solo tracks tonight (aside from the gorgeous “Northern Lights”).
The collective take a more subtle approach on the Talking Heads songs showcased, with “Burning Down The House” and “Road To Nowhere” treated to particularly restrained arrangements, the latter tastefully echoing the accordion of the original.
The musicians are obviously all having a fantastic time onstage, though, despite the complexity of their parts – they dance around and circle the stage in procession, and at one point Byrne and Clark seem to engage in some kind of dance-off while triggering a theremin. You don’t see that at every festival.
Tom Pinnock
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