The atmosphere
was just right in the Wedgewood Rooms that evening, the venue was at max
capacity, we'd just witnessed two support acts, Gross Magic and Fanzine, who
made a valiant effort to captivate the vast crowd before them, and In The
Aeroplane Over The Sea by Neutral Milk Hotel was on in the background. Yuck
were due to come on to the stage any moment now...
I had little
idea of what to expect from Yuck, with the only insight into their live
performances I had were from Jools Holland and the like. I was generally impressed
by what I had seen, so subsequently had high expectations for their set tonight.
The band emerged
to much applause, starting off with Holing Out. They started off strong, the
crowd were enthusiastic, and they played it really well. This continued
throughout the night; the band performed all the highpoints of their short
career to grateful crowds admirably.
Highlight of the
show was always going to be Get Away, far and away the biggest crowd-pleaser of
the evening, just after The Wall. They built up to it using different effects
and drums and the moment a recognisable note was made, applause erupted. The
crowd were the liveliest they had been all night, and it lasted until the
closing notes of the song. The bass-line, provided by Mariko Doi, felt almost
Pixies-esque.
The slower, more
heart-felt songs of the set were met with admiration from the crowd. It showed
that frontman Daniel Blumberg actually did have a great voice, Shook Down
highlighted this, refrains of "you could be my destiny / you could mean
that much to me" felt sincere coming from the singer.
Vocal work on personal
favourite song, Operation, was done by lead guitarist Max Bloom and he did a
surprisingly good job. He mimicked Blumberg's vocal style, and delivered it
with passion.
The biggest flaw
of the evening was that none of the band seemed to have the confidence they
needed to truly work the crowd and make it a memorable gig. It felt like they
were just going through the motions, and the only interaction with the crowd
was the occasional "this song is called..." or "thank you so
much for coming". The main singer's stage presence was very small, and he
seemed very timid throughout.
The band
frequently indulged in bouts of distortion for minutes on end between songs
with onlookers looking baffled. This was emphasised during the closing of their
set, where people looked perplexed about whether they were supposed to leave
the venue or wait until the end. The band, having exhausted the vast majority
of their material throughout the set, did not return for an encore. I'm a fan
of distortion in music, but when it's used to that extent it just becomes
slightly unbearable.
One day, it may
be possible that Yuck will be known as a truly great band, both on record and in
a live setting. While they proved tonight that they had the skill to play music
in front of 500 people, they didn't show the showmanship that is required to
make people really feel like part of the live experience. Until they find a way
to boost their self confidence on stage, I can't truly recommend going to see
them live over listening to the record at home.
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