Ladies and gentlemen, in the words of the truly magnificent KAISER CARTEL, come, join us and warm up by the fire…
Playing in the tomb-like confines of the Betsy Trotwood in Farringdon, London, this Brooklyn-based duo introduced us into their wonderful world of DIY cool music.
Courtney Kaiser and Benjamin Cartel function as an inside-out White Stripes - lady on the guitar and lead vocals, man on the drums - with less emphasis on the 'RnB'. They opened with a slow, Verucca Salt tinged acoustic pop number that was proof positive that ‘less is more’, with the power and beauty of the song shining through the sparse arrangement.
Ms Kaiser’s vocals were sweet with a hard edge. When singing the epic “Dog Star”, she mixed the purity of Emmylou Harris with the magical gothic of Tanya Donnely. But perhaps the most striking comparison would be Harriet Wheeler of The Sundays. It’s hard to say though, there was a genuine honesty behind Kaiser’s vocals, they were really beautiful.
To say there were so few instruments being played – guitar, drum, xylophone, and tight harmony vocals – they managed to encompass a nice basket of styles, from the sounds of the West coast, Alt.Country, Steeleye Span-esque heavy folk rock (who'd've thunk it?!), to cherry-flavoured indie pop. And there was a fair amount of instrument swapping, not to mention Benjamin Cartel taking centre stage for some of the numbers. In all, the set was utterly captivating.
|
But without a doubt, the highlight of the evening was their final song, where they stepped away from the stage and sang a haunting duo, as they walked through and serenaded the audience.
We were snuggled in one of the alcoves next to the stage (prime seating area!) and amazingly both Kaiser and Cartel popped their heads around the corner, and in a moment of true sincerity they sang to us for what seemed like the entire chorus. Apart from the fact that the acoustics sounded great, it was a very personal warm, glowing feeling. Honestly, we couldn't wipe the grins off our faces for ages afterwards.
In breaking down the barriers between themselves and the crowd they gave everyone a really moving experience. We were nearly in tears and I felt compelled to give Courtney Kaiser a massive hug afterwards. It’s easy to imagine that most people in the room felt the same way.
This mini-tour was Kaiser Cartel's first time round in London, but us at W&H truly hope to see them at this side of the pond again very soon. Fabulous stuff.
|
