| “Thanks to Liberez… just for
*being* Liberez,” says Redjetson guitarist Dan, later on. And he does have
a point. For Liberez assemble their equipment, create a 15 minute free-falling
death-jazz noise vortex of no discernable tempo, key or shape, disassemble their
equipment and leave. With all the grandiose occasion of leaning over to tie a
shoelace. Statements can often be convoluted, complex, pretentious things, but
there’s no doubting they’re a whole lot better when to the point. Even if you’re
not sure why. The only reasonable retort is to applaud. We think. Oxford’s
Twentysixfeet are a more complex proposition, but that’s not to say they’re
necessarily any more pretentious, or that they’re intent on making a particular
statement, but they leave a firm impression and are certainly part of the actions-speak-louder-than-words
brigade (not that it hurts to shout a bit either, eh). Frontman Beorn becomes
a casualty of this ethos as his back packs up mid-set and he spends the rest of
the evening painfully mimicking the second ape-man along in the universally-recognised
evolutionary scale diagram. Their aura is one of freeform expression, executed
with geeky but ruthless efficiency, biologically entwined with technology and
coming out looking like that kid from The Music radio-controlled by The Terminator.
Only given the injury, not exceptionally well controlled. New batteries, anyone?
They’re a kind of souped-up ‘Kid A’ with Trent Reznor’s genes, and while that
might occasionally make them an indie Linkin Park it also holds a great bundle
of promise. Promise isn’t something Redjetson need to show tonight, they’ve
followed through on that already. ‘New General Catalogue’ stands firm as one of
2005’s most awe-inspiring, intricate, expansive records thus far. What they need
is to justify the promotion that their debut made for them. Last time Crud saw
Redjetson they stumbled tentatively through rehearsed interpretations of a rumbling
post-rock apocalypse, and that wasn’t quite good enough. Watching the video is
never the same as being there in person, whatever it may be, and is certainly
no substitute. Tonight though we’re thrown so damn close, nose-to-nose, skin to
skin with this tortuous, enchanting creation we can practically feel our soul
being ripped a new hole. They feel exactly how a collective that sound
like Elbow with Mogwai’s heavy-duty steel turbines gaffered to their undercarriage
should. Blistering. Shocking. Strangely graceful. Every song is like an exorcism.
From the moment ‘Divorce’ busts open perfectly, powerfully, a smorgasbord of complimentary
juxtaposes and distracting immensity, to the hypnotic compacted enormity of ‘Pieces
Go Missing’ they come at you from every angle, penetrating, twisting and breaking
your attention into little pieces. As you’d expect of such an attentive looking
sextet, they deliver. ‘…The Sky Is Breaking’ especially is breathtaking in structure,
volume and timing. You couldn’t imagine it being created by anyone other than
those stood before you now. Singer Clive appears a little out of context,
curling around his microphone stand like a cruise singer, tidy white shirt tucked
into jeans, looking like an exhibit from the same gene pool as Daniel Beddingfield
and Keane’s Tom Chaplin. He’s at odds then, yeah, but he’s also the discipline,
the anchor that pulls in rich songs like ‘This City Moans’. He’s not one to trespass
on a song’s momentum, he brings in the focus but never looks to steal the shot.
In the same way records have it that a string quartet played on as the Titanic
headed towards its watery grave, when and if Judgment Day turns up we can see
Clive Kentish perched atop a rocky outcrop, belting his laments out one final
time as flames lick around his torso and singe his starched lapels. Thanks
to Redjetson then, just for being everything they should have been tonight. And
maybe a little bit more. Relevant sites:
http://www.redjetson.co.uk
James Berry for Crud Magazine 2004©
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| 04/05 British Sea Power - Live - Scala, London
04/05 Eels - Live - Royal Festival Hall, London
04/05 Doves, Elbow, Longview - Carling 24 , Manchester
04/05 Joy Zipper, ICA London
04/05 The National - 100 Club, London
04/05 Redjetson / Liberez / Twentysixfeet - Marquee, London
04/05 The Warlocks - Bethnal Green Working Men's Club
12/04 Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - ULU, London
12/04 Elbow - Live -Brixton Academy, London
12/04 Franz Ferdinand - Live - Alexandra Palace, London
12/04 Morning Runner - Kings College London
12/04 Carling Weekend Reading Festival 2005
12/04 Sigur Rós - Brixton Academy, London
12/04 Crud Top 20 Albums 2005 |  |
January 2001
July - August 2001
September - October 2001
November - December 2001
January - March 2002
April - July 2002
August - December 2002
January - March 2003
May - August 2003
November 2003
January - March 2004
April - September 2004
October - December 2004
January - March 2005
April - December 2005
January - August 2006
September - December 2006
January - September 2007
October - December 2007
January - May 2008
June-December 2008
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