Tunng & Friends
HMV Forum, London
06/11/2010

Folk fans are a punctual bunch, and the Forum is already respectably full when Hannah Peel kicks off this headliner-curated evening at 7.30. It’s just as well, because whether she’s playing piano, organ or music box, Peel’s rich, warm sound – and voice to match – is a delight.

So it’s all the more jarring when France’s GaBLé take the stage. The trio tow the line between band and performance – art troupe, crashing drums on the floor, blasting klaxons and destroying fruit packaging to create their avant-noise sound. It doesn’t really matter that the actual songs are perfunctory one-minute ditties. For Vermont folk revivalist Sam Amidon, however, the song is everything. His sparse, modern arrangements of ancient folk songs are highly effective on recent album ‘I See It All’, but when The Fly saw him last, his live delivery was aimless and unaffecting. Since then, it’s made small, but significant strides: the drums are softer, letting Amidon’s skilful guitar playing shine. But despite his growing confidence, Amidon’s gentle singing still doesn’t do justice to the force and fervour of the songs he’s repurposing.

Really, though, this evening is about Tunng. The electronic folk experimentalists’ 75-minute set feels like a homecoming party, not least because of a guest appearance by departed founding member Sam Genders. Tunng’s live sound is a swirling combination of dual guitars, electronic backing and unconventional percussion, including cowbell and sea shells. Genders’ rich vocals add heft to his numbers, but the stars of the show are undeniably singer Becky Jacobs – whose sweet voice adds a gentle touch to the dense sound – and guitarist/frontman Mike Lindsey. His gleeful writhing and prancing – and, at one point, heavy-metal guitar soloing – make for a giddily entertaining stage presence.

Rav Casley Gera