Swervedriver – Live @ Norwich Arts Centre
aaamusic | On 02, Jun 2015
Tuesday 26th May, Norwich
With Oxford bands Slowdive and Ride having had comeback shows recently, it’s great that the heavier side of shoegaze now makes a welcome appearance with Swervedriver putting out their first album in 17 years: I Wasn’t Born to Lose You. On the penultimate date of their UK tour they blessed Norwich Arts Centre with a show that shook the foundations of this ancient building.
Toronto based Dearly Beloved kicked off the evening’s shenanigans with an energetic stoner/psych rock type set complete with Theremin and bubble machine. They were clearly enjoying themselves in the presence of a small crowd and extended their stage through the auditorium to great effect.
Tonight in the atmospheric, converted 15th century church of Norwich Arts Centre, Swervedriver kick up a storm in front of a modest crowd of appreciative music lovers. Filling in on bass for this US tour is Mick Quinn from fellow Oxford band, Supergrass. They certainly got on with it, blasting through songs new and old ,starting with the “quiet” ‘Autodidact’ from the new album.
The new songs are much more powerful live with added feedback and distortion throughout the set, especially on closer ‘I Wonder?’. It was a tight set due to Mikey Jones’s precision drumming, and especially rocking were the classic ‘Rave Down’ and ‘Son of Mustang Ford’, with extra portions of wig-out at the end of each song (and blimey it was loud!)
The band return back for a deserved three-song encore, starting with the dreamy cacophony of ‘Everso’ from the new album, before finishing off with ‘Last Train to Satansville’ and ‘Duel’ from the 1993 album Mezcal Head. Excellent night.
