Paard van Troje, Den Haag
07/12/04
I’ve seen Aereogramme live more times than any other band over the past two years. I’m not ashamed of it. I’m not even close to bored with them. In fact, every occasion just leaves me desperate for more. If this means I’m incapable of writing an unbiased review of this Scottish quartet so be it, but I’m still sure they deserve all of the praise I’m about to throw at them. Possibly because they still feel like a secret not enough people have been able to discover, despite circuit after circuit of Europe.
This latest stretch of concerts saw them opening up each night with ‘Dreams and Bridges’ from their recent mini-album Seclusion. It’s a twisted monster that lets Aereogramme open up to their hushed prog-rock desires before turning into a metal beast reminiscent of Tool. It’s enthralling in its newness, despite being a staple in setlists for over a year, and a not-so-distant cousin from ‘Wood’, their favourite show closer (and mine).
The in-between journey is never so predictable, fluctuating between moments of delicacy and eruptions of noise and venting. The sensitive arpeggios of ‘I Don’t Need Your Love’ show the most fragile side of Aereogramme, while old b-side ‘Motion’ still steals hearts before rocking itself away. Then moments like ‘Older’ show flashes of the inner rage that makes these songs so fascinating in the first place.
Grumpy old buggers that they are, these shows are still enormous fun, filled with rock gurning, wide smiles, and musicians pulled into a trance onstage as they mouth along with the lyrics. Their cover of the Flaming Lips’ ‘Lightning Strikes the Postman’ even highlights the lighter side of proceedings, with guitarist Iain Cook unleashing a guitar solo that is so ludicrous that it’s fantastic.
Yet the most magical moment of the evening is ‘The Unravelling’. Okay, I confess, it was moment of the year, tied alongside the brain-mashing performance of ‘Taut’ by PJ Harvey earlier in the summer. This 10-minutes-plus composition is a compelling trip that once again demonstrates how far Aereogramme are willing to push the boundaries. Immensely dark, it contains a series of movements instead of anything resembling a verse or chorus. As such, it feels like a lengthy adventure that challenges any preconceptions you had left about this band.
For a Tuesday night in the heart of winter, things don’t get much better. The Aereogramme procession is due to roll again in February 2005. Catch it while the opportunity exists because something this good won’t be around forever - as much as I’d like that to be the case.
Steven McCarron
Photo: Brust
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