Saturday 24th January 2015
With lots of catching up to do we got to the lexington early. The Lexington is under-staffed, under-seated but definitely not understated with a huge chandelier, baroque benches and random antlers. I have a soft spot for it. It's the sort of place you might share a beer with Dickon from Careless Sons at the bar or watch Charlotte Austen charm the entire pub with a pre gig smile and a quick word.
We went upstairs early, I like support bands, who knows when you might stumble across a hidden gem. But Joseph wasn't it. Joseph is a one man band masquerading as a trio. The lead singer, presumably he who puts the Joe into Joseph, has a great voice but that's it, the songs were forgettable, the lyrics indecipherable and the personality was missing in action. The base player appeared to have a bad case of alopecia under the lights but in hindsight I think it was an ill advised bandanna.
I wonder if Joseph breathed a collective 'Oh we get it now' when Careless Sons took to the stage and actually performed. These boys have chutzpah. Maybe if Careless Sons and Joseph had babies you might have the bad boys and girl of folk - Skinny Lister.
But back to careless Sons. They're good! I had banished all thoughts of werewolves and vampires (although better a Spike than an Angel I say) and so it was a pity that they had to compete with the mother of all ear worms once Janie whispered in my ear that Rob was a dead ringer for a young Chesney Hawkes GAAAAAH HE is the one and only….. I like Ben's bouncing joie de vivre and Dicken's too cool for school demeanour. It just works.
Lux Lisbon followed - this was a more self assured and a less self depreciating band than we saw just three months ago. The Lexington was full and this was an audience not of friends, rellies and the curious - but of full on fans (and I count myself in that number) who now have favourite songs, know the lyrics and are prepared to sing along. Stu may be the king of self promotion and his charm, persistence and attention to detail will bring people to see the band - once - but the strength of the music and the passion of the performance is bringing people back.
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| Borrowed from the Lux Lisbon website. I'm in speccy corner - seemingly showing you the size of the one that got away. |
There were some great numbers tonight 'The Devils' Got Me Dancing' showcases the mesmerising quality of Charlotte's voice, and sends shivers down your spine even in a crowded bar in Islington.
There is essence of Billy Bragg in The Bullingdon Club - no better flavour if you ask me, made me wonder how it would be to hear Lux Lisbon perform 'The Milkman of Human Kindness' or 'Sexuality'.
And Get Some Scars is just special (not in an educational way) a song to get lost in and I defy anyone not to resonate with it at some level. There's a redemptive quality to the song in both lyrics and music the scars don't disfigure - they were bloody won!
I could wax lyrical about Lux Lisbon - they are musicians, story tellers, performers and some of the nicest people that you could hope to meet in a bar. Seeing them live reminds you that music can still speak to you. What did these ears do before they heard you?
But don't take my word for it http://luxlisbon.com
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