The Guillemots have been around since 2002 but it's only recently that the hype surrounding them has reached the masses and having only recently been made aware of them I was expecting big things from last night.Those who slated their new album 'Red' for being too 'mainstream' will probably love their live show but fans of their upbeat chart hits will feel a bit misled. Anyone expecting to hear more of the happy sound and bouncey beats of 'Get Over It' might have been a bit disappointed by last night's performance.There's no denying that this band reeks of musical talent- lead singer Fyfe Dangerfield constantly flits between guitar, keyboard and even harmonica. However there is a sense of 'too many instruments spoiling the sound' about them.I have no doubt that all the technical junkies out there would be bursting with excitment at the cleverly choreographed battle that was going on between classical strings, rocky guitars, punchy drum beats and strange futuristic keyboard effects but for a mere observer of music like myself it was almost too much to absorb.The bands new single 'Falling Out of Reach' is much more typical of the sound they displayed last night. The trance-like cosmic score that ran through most of their songs certainly gives them a unique edge over the raw guitar sounds of the herds of indie bands in the charts at the minute and Fyfe's singing voice is the best I've heard in a long time- but there's still something not quite right.I've been to the Acadmey a few times recently to see various bands and last night was the most static I have seen the usually bouncing crowd- perhaps they were all caught in The Guillemots hypnotic sound or maybe, like me, they were just a little confused.
When the opening bars of 'Get Over It' finally arrived towards the end of the hour long set the bounce of the crowd dramatically improved the atmosphere and made sure everyone left in good spirits despite the strange emotion-draining feel of the rest of the night.
Tilly Harris- Female First