On a typically bitter, windy November night, I made my way to Bethnal Green Working Men's Club for what was to be one of the more surreal gigs I've been to in my lifetime. Not to mention that I got lost on the way there and walked into an Evangelical Christian gathering by accident. It boded well for a strange evening...
Entering the blessedly warm venue, which was lit up like a brothel, I was confronted with a plethora of Art-House-Ites wearing heavy black eyeliner, black nail varnish, and black died hair. I take it that black must be the new, erm... black?
The backdrop on the stage was a large pink heart illuminated with red light bulbs. The tables were adorned with tin foil ashtrays and cheap candles. The atmosphere was seedy, smokey, and hazy - perfect for a performance from The IRREPRESIBLES.
It wasn't the best organised event by any means. At one point there were rumours flying around that the compare hadn't turned up, and there was the obligatory exaggerated flapping around just to add to the 'crisis'. I was fine though, everyone seemed to be relaxing in the strangely ambient atmosphere, and Kate Bush (The Dreaming) was being piped through the sound system, keeping everyone happy.
The room was full of self-styled eccentrics, and contrived or not I thought it added to the genuine weirdness of it all. There were quite a few heroin-slip women with Charleston haircuts and Kimonos (black of course), darting about the place, ruffling people's hair.
"Oh it's absolutely hysterical daaaaarling!" was the general catchphrase, with emphatic gesticulations all round. And when Kate Bush was replaced with Hammer-Horror dinner jazz complete with Theremin solo, the people went "Positively Mental."
The night's entertainment eventually got started, with an art/music video by JJ STEVENS, featuring The Irrepressibles. It involved a lot of lip gloss and wistful glances - I thought it was beautifully made, and it was kind of creepy. Especially when Jamie McDermot (Vocals, guitar) started to spew what looked like Tip-Ex. Nice.
Once the film was over, we were subjected to some "Solo improvisations on the Hammond Organ, by ORGAN MORGAN." An act that turned out to be an (unintentionally) hilarious display of unabashed musical masturbation. Seriously, it was what seemed to be a lifetime of trippy 1970's Sci-Fi noises on a moog and a Hammond (I think). Mr. Organ had obviously thought: "I've an idea - I'll watch Space Odyssey and buy some synths, and replay the space noises to a load of quasi-appreciative Shoreditch Haircuts who won't know any better..." Then, after many experiments he realised that he could get pretty much the same effect by dragging a cat along the keyboard, and then drowning it.
The following act was equally as bizarre. RYAN STYLES, a chubby gimp, dressed up as The Only Gay In The Village, who danced around for a couple of minutes with a bunch of peacock feathers. Fair enough.
|
So after a truly outlandish spectacle of pretension, I honestly didn't know what to expect when the Irrepresibles came on stage. Thankfully, I was to be completely bowled over, they were magnificent. How to describe this band? Burlesque, operatic, moving, melodramatic, talented, unique, eccentric... I could go on. This is what happens when classically trained musicians bustling with anger, passion, and a strong sense of narrative get together and form bands: pure musical quality and style.
They opened with a disturbing, operatic flamenco-esque ballad, complete with accordion, violin, cello, guitar and bass. And McDermot can really scream just like a girl. Highly impressive - I bet he can smash glass when hitting the high notes. "Love Laced Your Heart With Diamonds" was one of the musical high points, where McDermot's vocals trilled and warbled up and down about three octaves like a wobbly rollercoaster. His androgynous vocals are certainly one of the main hooks with this band, and in this respect they appear to be going down the same route as Anthony and the Johnsons, albeit less jazzy and infinitely more maladjusted.
Their music is dark, honest - in some places crazed and manic, in others soothing, but always deeply moving, beautiful and never boring. Their sound was completely evocative, and my imagination was rapidly ignited. In my mind's eye, I was transported to a twisted scary circus, the violins sounding like a tightrope wire that was about to snap, with no safety net beneath, and a pack of hungry lions waiting in the ring.
"Knife Song" crawls at the bottom of a dark pit, trying to drag itself out, dripping with pathos and despair, with all band members playing as though their hearts were going to break. On the other hand, "Lullaby On The Lid Of My Eye" is a beautiful, gentle melody with unapologetic yet joyful lyrics, "Maybe they'll be fire, burning, burning. I'll be your queer... I'll be the end to all your fears."
Listening to The Irrepresibles was like eating a very expensive bar of Belgium chocolate. They defy convention with flair and panache. Yes, they are cultish, and they are definitely on the fringes of alternative music, but so what? I'd urge any music fan to go see these as soon as they get the chance. But do try to avoid Organ Morgan on your way in...
|
