| American Music Club Islington Academy,London 23/01/05 A January freeze off from the tube station to the stage. I never knew they made venues, or shoulders, this cold� While by no means the first opportunity afforded the Capitol to see the reformed American Music Club in action, it is mine & could, in no way, dampen my anticipation of spending an evening in the company of the musicians, whose alchemic presence, bring something to the music of Mark Eitzel that the last ten years has proven he cannot quite achieve elsewhere. The elements, however were doing their best to ruin my �special night�; The Academy in Islington is fucking freezing, not just brrrrrr freezing, but mist- from- the- mouth- while- breathing freezing� Christ, there were smokers in the venue passing out because they could not work out when they had finished exhaling! So it was no little distraction from the onset of mild frost- bite to see Eitzel take the stage in a, highly appropriate, overcoat & pork pie hat. With him, new boy multi- instrumentalist, Marc Capelle, who tonight is restricted to all things �keys�. We were then treated to a guitar, piano, vocal reading of �Ladies & Gentlemen�, opening track from incredible comeback record Love Songs For Patriots (9 out of 10 on this site and most everyone else�s album of that month) before being joined by crazy Skeletal- Cowboy guitarist, Vudi, drummer Tim Mooney and bassist/ vocalist Dan Pearson. Predictably the night drew heavily from new material but foaming devotees were treated to all too rare performances of classics like �Western Sky� and �Blue & Grey Shirt� to name but two. Blighted by the odd setback - a broken guitar string in the first ten minutes could not be helped, the dodgy connection on Eitzel�s guitar that affected the support acts set also, clearly could; Eitzel rose to as engaging and enigmatic performance as I have seen him give, full of wild man gesturing, acrobatic, emotive vocals & a dry, incisive interaction with his audience. This though could not conceal a glaring lack of cohesion within the band. While the very definition of the AMC sound has always found it�s best form in a ragged, loose structure, there were clear signs of ring rust in many of these performances, most obviously �Another Morning�, a highlight of Love Songs� but, hit like a ton of bricks, lost all the ephemeral, flowing beauty of the recorded version. Ten years away has worked wonders for revitalised energy & drive in the studio, but has, it would appear, taken a very different toll on their ability to perform live. Relationships within the group also appear to have picked up where they left off in 1993. Eitzel�s insistence on responding to requests from the audience a clear source of annoyance to Pearson, who also seemed shocked by his singers comment �It will be many, many years before we return to London again, I hope you all have a good life if we should not�. The final straw for the bass player evidently Eitzel leaving the stage before performing another song that, judging by body language, everyone else in the band was expecting. He was left arms raised toward drummer Mooney, voicing displeasure before turning to the crowd, giving a resigned nod & exiting in the wake of his mercurial & oft trying front man. So, an American Music Club gig, much like the best of their records, containing memorable songs, powerful personalities & performances with no little hint of drama & crisis. The final chapter for one of the most vital & uncompromising bands of recent years? As with most things Mark Eitzel turns his hand to, you simply never can tell and to assume would border on fatal. Now, if I could only feel my own fingers�.. Review by Pete Gow for www.Americana.co.uk Return to homepage here |