The Veils live review
This gig review of The Veils is of their support slot at Digital, Brighton in October 2007.
This is the third time I’ve seen the Veils over a 4 year period. The first time I saw them in Bournemouth and they were a lively 4 piece all male rock band, fronted by a long haired shy looking fellow. The second time they supported The Fiery Furnaces in Belgium and their singer had lost his hair and gained a huge amount of confidence. The songs were the same, but they sounded stronger. Tonight they supported Ed Harcourt, but some in the audience had certainly come primarily to see them rather than Ed, and the entire band, save the front man, has been replaced, as had their sound.
The band looked fantastic on the stage, front man Finn Andrews standing centre stage has now grown into an imposing confident figure in a suit and wide brimmed black hat (he seems to wear this hat at all times now, it can also be seen on their latest album cover), and a devastatingly sultry girl stands at his side playing bass. The drummer and the lead guitarist were more or less unseen tonight due to the stage arrangement giving the impression that the bands huge sound almost emits from these two alone.
Both their albums are fantastic, and on balance, both previous live shows were outstanding, but despite everything looking good on paper, I have to say I was a little disappointed tonight at first. The band throughout their set more or less abandoned their first album, fully focusing on their new sound, and started off with a run of the more ‘difficult’ elements of their new album. The sound of these tracks is very hard, like Nick Cave Grinderman or Birthday Party era, with pounding drums, screeching guitars and lyrics violently shrieked into the dirge. I could tell what they were doing was skillful and to some people I imagine right on the mark, but I prefer my Nick Cave ballad style, and have never been a fan of this particular musical direction.
Here’s one of those tracks – Jesus for the jugular.
Then, halfway their set they played the single “Advice for Young Mothers to Be” a poppy track which somehow reminds me of The Monster Mash (no bad thing) and this broke the mood. I relaxed, and when they returned to the harsher stuff I suddenly got it, fun as that last song was, Finn’s real strength lies in his voice, powerful and raw, which cuts deep into your soul if you let it. This voice has to be backed by violent music to get the point across and as the band played the last song, “Not Yet” and shivers ran down my spine I realised that far from going down hill this man and his new band are only just beginning to realise their potential. I see now why the band has fans traveling all over the world to see them play, they must be one of the best live experiences out there.
It was a shame they did not play a headline gig in Brighton, the balance of lighter and harder tracks works so well as I found tonight, but with time limits they could not really get that balance across. Additionally, after their brief but emotionally draining performance, one that keeps playing long after you’ve seen it, there’s not much room for anything else in your day. I shall be seeing them again as soon as possible (which could be years on past form sadly), and bringing everyone I can. Unmissable.
Here’s the outstanding “Not Yet”, performed live – but be aware, it can’t do justice to seeing this band in the flesh.
Other views
After the gig my companion said she thought the band were amazing, and this is someone who hadn’t seen them before, perhaps without my preconceptions she could truly see the brilliance from the start.
I was stood by the band to watch Ed Harcourt but had to move for people going up to them and telling them how much they had enjoyed the performance.
The mood of the room tonight was good then – but please leave a comment below if you’ve ever seen the band with your views.
The Veils albums (click the images to purchase)
The Runaway Found is their debut, and according to the Guardian is “Essential for anyone who likes their music to stand metaphorically on a mountain and rage at distant stars”. Full review here.
Nux Vomica was released in 2006 and was described as “a wonderful step forward from an already strong foothold” by All Music Guide. Full review here.
Both albums were given average ratings of 70% – 80% by metacritic, who average reviews from a large number of sources.
Music Videos
The tide that left and never came back (from The Runaway Found)
Calliope (from Nux Vomica)
Advice for Young Mothers To Be (Nux Vomica – the monster mash song)
Here’s the monster mash for comparisons…
More on The Veils
The Veils wikipedia article has a few facts about the band, Finns dad used to be in XTC for example and they are from New Zealand, although tonight we learnt the drummer is German and they claim to be from London.
The Veils Myspace lets you sample tracks and find live dates (upcoming tours of New Zealand and Australia in November 2007).
Fabchannel has a full headline concert by The Veils to watch for free, 14 tracks from both albums – well worth watching if you have some time. Head over and type ‘The Veils’ into the search box.
The Veils official site is pretty but irritating, with far too many popups to be and easy browse. There are some nice photos on there, but its no good for work as music plays on loading. Better head straight to the Veils forum for a taste of the devoted fan base.
For more gigs in Brighton be sure to visit our Brighton gig listings page.
