The music industry has changed a lot in the modern world; it has become fast paced environment which sees new bands go from the release of their first single to massive headline tours in little under a year. In most cases these bands have reached this peak of success so quickly due to some great single releases which force them into public ears and thus, massive chart success; but this can lead to easily skip-able album filler which doesn’t quite hold the listeners attention.
This appeared the case with Glaswegian synth pop trio Chvrches. Despite being described as Album of the year by many reviewers, their debut The Bones of What You Believe, released in September 2013 didn’t seem to live up to the hype created by the pre-album released singles. What was left to be heard appeared to fall flat alongside the punchy energy of tracks like ‘Gun’ and ‘The Mother we Share’ which for many was the soundtrack to summer 2013. However, all scepticism of this band and their lack lustre filler material was well and truly blown away during their Newcastle O2 Academy debut; bursting into the northeast with their brand of pounding electronics and rejuvenating their lesser loved tracks.
Kicking off the evening of booming synth pop was something a little more relaxed; perhaps a move to ease the audience into a false sense of security for what was to come, or a badly matched pairing of a solo acoustic act with a high energy electro affair. The support in question was Birdie Monds-Watson AKA Soak; this young Irish singer-songwriter also happens to be the first signing to Chvrches new label Goodbye Records. NE:MM had the pleasure of sitting down with Soak to have a chat; although the endearingly sweet charm of miss Monds-Watson which we witnessed in our interview appeared rather lost in the sea of rather uninterested electro fans which packed out the huge venue.
Chvrches however, were far from lost! Their ability to command a somewhat acoustically subdued audience to attention made them right at home on stage as they quickly fired through some album favourites including Sink, Gun and Lies in the fifteen minutes. Despite Lauren Mayberry’s slightly shaky vocal start, she quickly hit her stride and the trio pounded through their album with a furiousness that gave the once ‘filler-esque’ tracks a much fuller and resonating sound; elevating tracks like Tether to the level of the big hits.
The night’s performance appeared abundant with efforts to liven up the material; this was aided greatly by an impressive lighting design which mimicked the geometric style of The Bones of What You Believe album art. This bright display was hard to ignore and at times the only thing to be seen over the packed crowd. Alongside this effort was an interesting shuffle in the bands composition, with synth player Martin Docherty taking over the microphone to display some rather erratic dance moves whilst he restyled Under the Light. Mulberry graciously took to the synth during this performance, showing that Chvrches may be more versatile than we think and perhaps the next album will have some changes in store.
Chvrches redeemed themselves with their energetic performance, adding weight to their album tracks; however as band with only one album they fell into yet another familiar trap of early success. This was a particularly short show and one which had begun rather early, which to many was a disappointment. As a band that are hailed for their ability to cover tracks with style it seemed great let down that they didn’t feel the need to flesh out their encore with some well-loved covers. But perhaps this focus on the album alone will encourage fans to revisit and re-enjoy those filler tracks with a new lease of life.
Words: Dominique Daly
Photo: Daniel Robson
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