Micachu & The Shapes/ The Invisible/ Connan Mockasin

The Scala
15 October 2009

Let us start at the end.

M&TS are so completely in control that they can even get away with a lengthy and noodley cover of McCartney curio Temporary Secretary as an encore, joined in the gleeful show of willfulness by all members of the support acts. Fuck it - on home turf and obviously pleased to be there, so why not? Throughout the set they took their already deconstructed songs and pulled them around to fine effect - Guts especially - making LOTS OF NOISE (sometimes) or being very quiet (sometimes).

They have been gigging constantly for quite a while now and the benefit of this experience is apparent, as each time I have seen them play there have been new variations of some kind, and what's more they look like they love it, with lots of smiles and winks across the stage as the games and tweaks are pulled off.

Partly for the maintenance of their own sanity, I'm sure, the ongoing variations are being followed into the armoury by new songs, which are not all as instant as the album tracks, although one - forgot the name, curses! - was a stormer and bodes well for the next round. In summary I would like to say something chunky and concise like 'Fuckin' A!', but I can't remember whether or not that is a compliment these days.

(There should be a better photo here, but my feeble iphone camera can't cope with the lights at the Scala. This picture is so bad that it is quite funny.)

The Invisible were better than I thought they would be, based on what little I had heard before; informed by a post-Factory minimal rhythmic thing that seems to be popular at the moment, there is more to them than that but it doesn't quite convince. I can't help wondering what we would hear if they didn't have a mixing-desk's worth of effects pedals; they were due to do the last Bandstand Busk but pulled out due to illness - unfortunate, as that would have shown the songs in plain view. M&TS comfortably showed what their songs can be distilled to when they did a BB set in August.

Connan Mockasin had some quirky off-stage presentation stylings, and an occasional throat tapping gimmick, but were most comfortable knocking out very slightly unconventional bluesy rock which was ok for the most part.