Reviews

Artists: Sarabeth Tucek
Venue: Union Chapel, Islington
Town: London
Date: 10th May
Website: http://sarabethtucek.wordpress.com

Sooner or later it had to happen - late for a gig. Only 5 minutes and completely due to a problem on the overground at Richmond but still, that 5 minutes meant me standing by the sound desk at the back of The Union Chapel as it would have been the height of rudeness to force my way into the middle of a crowded pew to see New Yorker Sarabeth Tucek.

I had been listening to her new album 'Get Well Soon' for a couple of weeks before this show and was expecting its "hint(s) of melancholia" to translate well in this setting but, unfortunately, it was not to be. With Tucek playing an electric guitar accompanied (for the majority of the tracks) by an acoustic guitar the set fell into a no mans land, somewhere between rock and acoustic.

The songs were there: 'State That I'm In', 'Exit Ghost' and 'A View' were all wonderful and the closing track 'Get Well Soon' - where they were joined on stage by Christian Hardy of The Leisure Society (the headliners) - was sublime, and I could listen to her rich, seemingly effortless voice all night yet the performance was muted with little interaction with the audience.

I'm pretty sure I imagined this bit (OK I know I imagined this bit) but there was a point when Tucek turned to look behind her, saw the empty drummers stool and bass amp waiting to be switched on and wished she had a band with her.

John 'The Jacket' Hawes