Grizzly Magic

KOKO
18 August 2009
Daniel looks downcast as, once again, Ed headbutts the microphone. Ooo.

Bought the tickets, read the reports, heard the bootlegs and seen the recent live feed from Pitchfork, now it was finally time to see GB in action - and the anticipation was justified, as a dazzling show it was; I don't think I've seen anything better or more enjoyable, and apparently they deliver every time. *boggles*

The Grizzlers gave us their complex arrangements and layered harmonies, building them into great, shimmering, absorbing swirls of sound that whispered and then roared, often to end with a sigh. Genius at work.

Older tracks from Yellow House were very much at home amongst the newer songs; hard to pick a favourite moment. The only slight grumble would be that their familiar cover of The Crystals' He Hit Me was the only encore. More!

There were occasional issues with the sound, although the techs did catch up with the band eventually, which was a relief as KOKO isn't always the best on that score. Would have loved this to have been at the Roundhouse.

Magic Arm, supporting, who has great songs but can be a little haphazard live, did the smart thing and rose to the occasion and gave the best performance I have yet seen from him (and that would be the, um, 9th time....). Hopefully the exposure will prove beneficial.

10/10. Yeah.