Music | Get Your Coats On

“Resident host Sian Bevan never fails to amuse”

Editorial Rating: 4 Stars

Ding ding, it’s round three of the Lyceum Variety Nights, and the last in the current season.

This latest outing had a very contemporary and slightly alternative feel, and it’s good to see curator Jenny Lindsay flexing her little-black-book muscles to bring a more diverse line-up of music, theatre, poetry and dance to proceedings.

Overall the night was a pleasing mix of more established artists sharing some of their fondest work from yesteryear, performing alongside some red hot and right now acts, sharing pieces from their latest collections. Among the red hot and right now were dancer Jack Webb, whose inclusion as the first dance act of the programme I was really excited about. He performed an emotive and powerful contemporary-style piece to a discordant soundscape, which, while not the most accessible of pieces, certainly brought some zing to proceedings. Musical acts The Miss’s and Maud the Moth were also bang up to date and on the pulse, sharing genre bending tunes and stunning vocals that just left me breathless.

It was nice too, to have the quieter moments, perhaps most finely shared by Caroline Bird, whose rather more introverted stage presence created a lovely balance between a lot of the madness and noise of some of the other acts. Her poetry was awash with splendid imagery and moments to cherish, that really left me longing for more. Mairi Campbell, accompanied by viola, brought a touch of the traditional to the night, and even had us all singing along with her folk-style music at the end of her set – delightful.

Yet while the variety of the performers was wider than in previous instalments, thus making it feel a little more niche, for me it’s the quality of all the acts which is key to the night’s success. Each night’s line-up never fails to include award winners, experienced practitioners and well-regarded artists from across the spectrum, and though they may not all appeal to individual tastes, those with a wider appreciation for the arts should be able to at least enjoy the overall skill on display. A special shout-out too to resident host Sian Bevan who never fails to amuse with her witty and sometimes humorously irreverent compering!

I have to say that this was not my personal favourite evening of the programme, but that’s variety for you – you can’t win ‘em all! I very much hope another season of these nights is programmed for next year, and I look forward to attending them all.

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Reviewer: Steve Griffin (Seen 4 June)

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THIS REVIEW HAS NOT BEEN SUBEDITED

“Their energy and stage presence was infectious”

Editorial Rating: 4 Stars: Outstanding

This is a Fringe show that has brought its own warm-up act. It may be a little arrogant, but once the real deal gets going it’s easy to see why – the sounds made by these lads with just their mouths was simply astonishing.

I’ve seen a lot of a capella groups, especially at the Fringe, and what I liked about these guys is that at just five members, compared to the usual twelve or so one might normally expect, they easily made it sound like there were several more of them on stage creating multiple levels. The layering and blend of voices in different parts is so on point that you can’t really tell who is singing what, while their energy and stage presence was infectious.

From one of the top vocal groups on the circuit, their basic “party pieces” were flawless, but this show attempted to combine a capella with comedy. Support act Love Heart came back on stage half way through to introduce a section where the group would improvise songs around a genre and subject. The improvisation itself delivered incredible attempts at traditional Irish, country and calypso music (all from audience suggestions), and I was desperate to have seen these developed further.

For me there was too much chat and not enough singing in this show, and although the interludes were enjoyable, that’s not what the majority of the audience were there to see.

While I won’t linger on some of the unfortunate vocal cracking from the singers at the higher end, the standout Son from this performance was undoubtedly Midé Adenaike. His beatboxing skills were jaw-droppingly fantastic, and particularly in the night’s closing number he stole the show.

For the most part this was an upbeat vocal party, but for me the real proof of an a capella group’s mettle is in their stripped back numbers. The Sons’ penultimate song was the self-penned Foundations, a ballad about stability within a relationship. Unfortunately without Adenaike on beats the group seemed a little lost, and although delivering a good performance, it wasn’t to the standard of their earlier tunes.

While this is a very impressive troupe with a lot to offer the world of a capella, in this performance they didn’t quite blow me away as much as perhaps they should have done, but it was still an incredibly enjoyable hour.