Playlouder - Music is the Network

Amusingly billed as “downbeat indie folk” by Time Out, this evening’s proceedings could go one of many ways.

‘Dark Age’, as far as I’m aware, the last full album by While Angels Watch, is a brilliant gothic masterpiece of apocalyptic visions and mythical musings. Often did it soundtrack my long walks to and from the post office depot on the outskirts of Falmouth a couple of years ago.

That’s why I’m here. What’s your excuse?

Circus Joy are introduced by the compere, a very enthusiastic Italian woman who, with a mixture of a mother’s pride and a starstruck groupie's adulation, introduces the ragtag bunch of nearing-middle-aged Italian rockers as her good friends from back home, Roma.

And by God these guys rock! The drummer has so many tricks up his sleeve that from one song to the next they flit from rockabilly to industrial-sounding dirge stomp.

The band (with a healthy dose of sunglasses and jeans) may look like a standard pub rock group (albeit a pretty stylish one – they are Italian, after all) but their musical arsenal is anything but boring. In fact, they’re so good that about half of my friends (one) can’t take it and goes out to the bar for a drink.

Not me though, Circus Joy’s distorted riffs and guitar-abuse, coupled with some truly excellent fluctuating brass craziness – that cannot help but recall One More Grain to my ears – is a musical broth that wants no seasoning. And the wiry front man’s snarling spoken word tirades, many of which (along with his rowdy band mates) are delivered with back turned directly to the audience, pack a pretty awesome punch.

Roman rock is alive and well – its name is Circus Joy.

Having never heard of Naevus, and having come for their support act, I’m almost ready to leave when they get onstage, but a rare wave of compassion washes over me and I decide to hear them out. Thankfully, they are more than worthy of my attention. Powerful, compelling, dark and even at times hilarious ('Meat on Meat'): their comparatively small setup (bassist, acoustic guitarist and drummer) loses nothing in the delivery.

The repetitive, often simplistic chord structures are pounded home by a ruthless rhythm section and the lyrics and vocals recall a less-annoying Douglas Pearce or perhaps an Ian Curtis with an eye for irony and dark humour. The songs are the strongest I’ve heard for a long time in or around the neofolk sphere.

Further inspection reveals they released a split-EP with Italian “nihilist suicide pop” act Spiritual Front, whose criminally overlooked masterpiece ‘Armageddon Gigolo’ hasn’t left my metaphorical turntable for a year and a half.

Good company. I look forward to hearing much more from Naevus in future, and indeed from their existing back catalogue.

Oh and the bit in the middle? Well, contrary to my misgivings, While Angels Watch played a storming set of militaristic snare drums, electric violins and Dev’s doom-laden, cavernous voice, proclaiming like a wizened soothsayer: “MAN’S TIME CAN ONLY OFFEND” and “THE HUMAN RACE SHALL CEASE”, and other such similar portentous poetics, in an earnest, powerful and utterly convincing manner. 

Perhaps they were a little out of practice – one can assume, given they hardly ever seem to play live – but the whole experience was one of the best live performances I’ve seen for a while, hell, maybe ever. 

I exaggerate not.

They played what seemed like pretty much all of ‘Dark Age’, and that’s a body of work not a lot of people can better.

And if I was writing a dark folk celeb gossip column (if only) I’d have to point out I saw somebody who looked suspiciously like Andrew King with a pint of what looked like John Smiths not far from the stage at one point. Exciting stuff!

I’ll definitely be heading down to The Half Moon again, provided the apocalypse holds off for another few years.