Angus Munro opened the night to a packed out cave. Bristling with confidence, he and his keyboard launched into a series of bright pop songs that had a bit too much of a hint of manilow for my tastes, but you couldn't fault his enthusiasm or commitment to ensure we were all having a good time. A fun opener, but not memorable.
The duo Jellyman were doubled in size with the addition of Jamie Francis on banjo and Herbie Loening on double bass. We've been watching them for several years now and all that early promise is rapidly being fulfilled. Graham Coe and Emily Kelly have developed their own eclectic sound and style, mixing largely self penned material with a few surprising and imaginative covers. While both sing and play, it's Kelly's gutsy vocals and Coe's driving, chopping cello that most strongly identify the Jellyman's signature. They are also a much more assured stage presence, witty, self deprecating, more confident in their craft.
With two excellent albums behind them, and the new EP for which this was the launch gig (I bought it and it offers further development of the duo's unique identity) there's a good fund of material to draw on, and this was a well balanced set, slow and fast, new and familiar. There is nobody else quite like them.
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