I must have been having a Vulcan mind meld with Electric Cinema, for we all turned up in assorted black and red outfits. Mine was a well executed sartorial attempt at corporate chic, theirs’ was a wardrobe malfunction designed to make them look like a band in synch when really there was no need.
For this four piece from Watford – comprising a brother and sister and their two mates – don’t need to adopt a colour scheme or a new stylist, their soaring music, sincere lyrics and canon of soon to be classics speak for themselves and are arresting enough. This is one gem of a band and its hybrid of indie electronica and gorgeous melodies will weave its magic into your body and soul.
The gig kicked off with the poignant crackle of Brand New Blues. It’s the kind of song you can wallow to, it contains some cracking synthesizer action, that can draw you out of your melancholia as well as helping you slide into dipsomania. Note must be made of the head-banging keyboard player, Martin Gear, he gave it all to the music. Other top tunes of the night included the mesmerizing Cut Down, which is a particularly bitter sweet, barbed tune. I Could Know All of You also sent a shiver down my spine
The indie-pop fest that is Heat Exchange was also another massive crowd pleaser and the lead singer, Dan Neale’s voice reminded me a shade of the Divine Comedy. It is one of those songs that just gets better and better the more you hear it. It feels psychedelic and the refrain is one that you can imagine a legion of red and black attired acolytes singing back to the band. The Damon Albarn-esque We Are Robots pays homage to hard-edged indie roots, while being effortlessly timeless.
iTunes recently picked the band’s So Hello / Goodbye one of its Best in Store buys, so it seems that I am not the only one that has been caught off guard by the elfin beauty of guitarist Rebecca Neale and Electric Cinema’s epic take and sensibility.
Electric Cinema MP3s or CDs
Electric Cinema on Spotify
