Who
Gruff Rhys
Support
Group Listening
Where
Birmingham Glee Club
When
13th November 2018
Price
£18.00
Who with
No-one
Position
Towards the front
Comments
2018 had proved to be a very quiet year for gigs, as perhaps after travelling to Havana in February it has completely thrown out all my sense of timing, and simply not many artists of note have toured and been worth the effort. Sometimes in the past I have almost regretted attending even some pretty good gigs such as Gorillaz or The Prodigy, and as there are so many other things to do with my time and attending concerts is so time-consuming - or at least writing up the reviews is! - I shouldn't force myself if I don't want it. Despite my best intentions I've taken over six weeks to write up this review, and I do struggle to see how time goes by so easily, or indeed how anyone can ever be bored when there is so much that can be done! This was my third time seeing Gruff Rhys solo, as well as watching his "pantomime" in Cardiff, Neon Neon once and SFA themselves on a stonking 19 occasions, so I've certainly become familiar with the man over the years. I got tickets well ahead of time and no-one was interested in joining me, with my brother being positively affronted that I asked him along. Why getting people to join in wonderful experiences is such a challenge is frustrating and incomprehensible to me. Tickets cost around the same price as Wolfgang Flür too, which is unusual considering Gruff is so well-established, but perhaps the reputation of Kraftwerk puts Wolfgang on the same level? Around the time of the show I had just caught up with my other gig reviews and finally sorted out my Havana pics, which took several weekends of intense effort, and as I write this I'm at work enjoying a very quiet day, in that special time between Christmas and the New Year.

I didn't give Gruff as much of a pre-listen as I should have, just giving the new Babelsberg album a spin or two, but I was enjoying The Beach Boys back catalogue so much that I even stuck with hearing it on my way to the show! It was a cold but dry night, and I waited in Wolves for the super off-peak trains from 6:30pm. I had refrained from trying to finish work earlier than 6pm, and again would be driving home from Wolves afterwards rather than relying on trains to take me the full distance. I made some initial notes on the train and researched the running times of the show, being surprised upon arrival to find that the doors were already open at 7pm, and all the published information was wrong! It had been pretty much exactly ten years since I'd watched Neon Neon at the same Glee Club and one year since watching Euros Childs in Digbeth, so November was a good month for me to enjoy Welsh legends. I also caught up on my phone internet, and upon arrival I headed upstairs in Grand Central and settled on a chip shop for some plaice and chips, resisting the Yorkshire pudding wrap place I wanted to visit because the published prices weren't big enough to see from a distance, and I didn't like how the staff stared at everyone and were trying to draw us in. Do aggressive sales techniques and poor information really work on anyone? However, the meal I had was large and lovely, although I did worry about the quantity of Coke I consumed, and the choice of dining options above Birmingham train station seems to grow more wonderful by the visit.

By the time I got to The Glee Club at 7:30pm and sneakily used the Wetherspoons loos I observed that the doors had already opened, at first thinking that there just wasn't a queue outside. This was frustrating, and the normally smooth entrance to The Glee Club was also slowed down as the staff took ages trying to find my name on the list. I'd much rather they could just give me a ticket, as what would even happen if there was a mix-up and someone was denied entry? I was most surprised to go upstairs and find that there weren't even any seats, as this hadn't been mentioned anywhere beforehand. I was wearing a large coat and trousers with lousy wide pockets and just wasn't prepared for a standing concert, and as my last two viewings of Gruff here and indeed all my most recent visits had been seated, the thought of it being a standing show had just never entered my mind. Now if I'd been a little prepared for this I'd probably have preferred it, and the positive side is that it meant it was easy to get near the front, and my unexpected arrival after the doors had opened hadn't done any harm at all. The standing situation did mean I had to carefully hold my slippery coat as it kept falling from my hands, while also watching that my iPod and camera didn't fall out. As it was relatively quiet still I popped to the loo again, and I'm glad that my late work finish and the organisational fuck-ups didn't ruin my experience, or indeed did the volume of Coke I drank cause me any further dramas! I stood at the front but left a little space out of respect for the artists, as it was a small enough show that there were no crash barriers. The support act was advertised as Group Listening starting at 8pm, and at first I thought that it could literally be a group chat or PowerPoint presentation led by Gruff!

It turned out that Group Listening are a band who I seem to have forgotten to describe in my notes, but the internet reminds me that they are a classical/ambient/instrumental duo who mainly focused on obscure cover versions of works, say by Brian Eno. They used tape recorders onstage and at one point amusingly had to delay a song because they'd forgotten to rewind the tape in advance, plus they wired up a noisy original Walkman to provide further background noise. One band member corrected the other when he claimed they were using a 4-track, saying in fact that it was an 8-track, and one of the duo who used a recorder in fact joined Gruff playing guitar for the main set, whereas the other guy on keys did not, looking like a cross between Romesh Ranganathan and Nick Frost. Unfortunately further details elude me, but they were entirely pleasant and finished the set by saying that "we are Group Listening and you have been group listening!" The stage was backed up by a Glee Club logo and there were bouncers to the left and the right, but they pleasantly didn't harass the fans, and as there were no rules advertised about photography we just quietly took a few pics throughout, and the security had the decency to leave us to it. After Group Listening vacated the stage it was extremely annoying that a few people pushed in front of me rudely, as I'd only left the space to avoid crowding the stage and had planned to be at the front myself. However, as they were so far forwards they were perhaps not as comfortably situated as I'd had wanted to be in any case. My phone re-emerged and I caught up on the internet again, and the wait for the main event was filled by a practically endless version of She's So Heavy by The Beatles, that just looped the ending of the song again and again. It was so repetitive but, much like The Man Don't Give A Fuck, the underlying charm and quality of the sample stood up and perhaps even grew on us as it continued and continued.

Kliph was still part of the band and appeared early to smash out some beats on the drums, and a roadie was sporting a fetching Babelsberg tour t-shirt, which confusingly claimed that all the dates took place in Babelsberg! The Glee Club also had a red curtain background, which reminded me of Twin Peaks, and I could just about glimpse the setlist from where I was standing, but for the most part I resisted peering at it, although I did glean that they'd be playing Gyrru Gyrru Gyrru sometime towards the end. As I am so used to disappointment again and again I didn't even attempt to get the setlist afterwards. A normal mobile phone was plugged in and left on the stage floor, out of which the Babelsberg logo was projected onto the Glee screen, and I wondered if it was Gruff's personal mobile, but leaving it unattended at a concert seems rather a risky thing to do! Gruff and his band came onstage at 9pm, with one of Group Listening on guitar and Kliph on drums as I already have said, as well as a slightly grumpy-looking keyboardist, who fortunately seemed to enjoy himself more later in the set! Gruff was still very much indulging in the array of signs that have been a mainstay of his stagecraft for over ten years now since coming into full force around the time of the Neon Neon shows of 2008. The first sign was one proclaiming the album Babelsberg, as Gruff explained that the population was four hundred and something, which I suspect was the size of tonight's crowd! He turned around the sign to reveal that first up was Side 1, meaning that a chronological performance of the new album was imminent. It wasn't what I expected, but as I had no special desires for anything particular it was something I was more than happy to accept. Plus it meant I'd get to hear lots of good Gruff songs I've never seen performed live before!

The set therefore opened with Frontier Man, which is one I love, especially how Gruff's vocals lift at the end. Now I seem to have not written down many details, so unfortunately I can't go into as much depth as I'd like, but Gruff was seated pretty much throughout. Limited Edition Heart was charming, and before Take That Call Gruff clarified that in reality we should not take that call during the show! The one song from Babelsberg that I know I've heard live before is Negative Vibes, and Gruff encouraged us to boo, before Kliph amusingly and loudly started screaming enthusiastically in a maximum American accent about how much he loved the song, and encouraging the band to start playing it. He'd come a long way in the 16 years from being a Flaming Lips balloon roadie who coveted my Furrymania t-shirt that is still in great shape but which I sadly didn't think to sport tonight. The people who'd pushed in front of me were an annoyance, as I gradually shifted right to avoid a guy who was blocking my view of Gruff and my ability to take clean photos. Kliph was wearing a t-shirt saying I Love Cymru, or at least a variation on that, and I made quite a few attempts at taking pictures, although I did resist the urge to shoot any videos. I was too close to get a full band shot though, and the guy in front of me kept turning his head so that his nose and hair kept obstructing my shots, which was rather annoying. The album which I seem to have spectacularly failed to draft any detailed notes for came to a close with the very pretty Selfies In The Sunset, and the set continued with what was the only venture into SFA material with a rendition of Colonise The Moon.

I presume Gruff wrote it largely by himself, which is why he feels comfortable performing it without his band mates, but at the outset the rest of the group left the stage, leaving just Gruff and the keyboardist. The guitarist then re-emerged for an actual saxophone solo, which much as you'd expect from saxes wasn't great, but at least we didn't vomit throughout it! Gruff recorded and looped his vocals cleverly towards the end, and used the box with several ambient sound settings as background, which annoyingly I can't find the name for. I thought it was the tambura, but seemingly not! More exciting was Gwn Mi Wn, although it took me an age to remember the name of the tune, as Gruff again looped his vocals and the keyboardist joined Kliph at the end to bang along on the drums! I did much miss the electronic drumsticks that Gruff used to beat "against" thin air as these were very charming, but I have since dug out an extended live rendition of this track that captured this particular glory! Shark Ridden Waters was without the elaborate pre-recorded start, and Candylion was very pleasant, if quieter and slower than I would have imagined. Gruff then grabbed a sign featuring a picture of the muppet version of John Evans, which heralded the arrival of an American Interior segment of the show. Gruff explained that there were no existing photos or portraits of John, so the purple muppet was absolutely what he must have looked like based on painstaking scientific research! It was a surprise to then hear Liberty (Is Where We'll Be), as it's not a tune from the album I'd have picked, but it nevertheless provided a lovely section of the show, even if it only lasted for two songs.

The album title track American Interior was absolutely a highlight of the set, with Kliph really smashing those drums at the start. Next up was a tune that the guys explained was being played for the third time ever, although they talk about playing it quite a bit. It took me a while to recognise it, and sadly it wasn't I Love EU, but I did eventually recognise No Profit In Pain as being that song about the NHS. It was a very pretty and unexpected choice, and perhaps a reminder that I need to explore Gruff's solo catalogue much the way I'd got into Euros Childs' material after several listens and assembling a hugely appealing Best Of collection. I think at this point Gruff got out a remote control and used it to lower the screen for the projector, explaining that if a projector was available that it was something they would certainly use! Gruff continued to project from his phone, now a declaration that there would be no phoney encores. Gruff swiped right a couple of times to reveal this proclamation in increasingly small lettering! Next up was the fabulous rendition of Sensations In The Dark that I'd been hoping for, with Gruff attaching his Dylan-style mouth organ, and I think this may be the point where he started screaming and playing back his screams in a glorious and chaotic loop at the climax of the tune. Or this could have happened during Cycle Of Violence, I'm really not sure anymore, as Gruff asked us if he should carry on playing, being unsure what the transport situation in Birmingham was, and if futuristic modes of travel were in place to whisk us all home. Someone predictably heckled for Skylon, but quick as a flash Gruff explained that they don't play it on Tuesdays, and instead they gave us the much quicker and perhaps equally satisfying Gyrru Gyrru Gyrru, explaining this meant driving, driving, driving in English, or fahr'n fahr'n fahr'n in German, reminding me of a certain song by Kraftwerk which was also about driving!

This felt like the finale, as Gruff got out the Ape-shit and Louder signs to encourage applause (after an earlier Ripple Of Applause sign), and went round the band in turn and pointed at them to indicate that they should receive applause too. Gyrru Gyrru Gyrru ended very abruptly, but this led to the very quiet finale of If We Were Words (We Would Rhyme), with a most beautiful and unexpected segue. It's a pleasant tune but far from being my favourite, and Gruff placed a sign saying The End as the band left the stage to much applause. The room had seemed pretty full behind me and the crowd seemed to have enjoyed it, but as my focus had been on the show and the annoying pushers in front of me I can't say I paid full attention! We headed outside with ten minutes to go before 11pm, as I noted some unexpectedly cheap £10 official t-shirts randomly declaring "I love college", as well as the much more alluring Babelsberg t-shirts for £20. I stopped briefly outside Snubs nightclub to photograph the wall of faces that reminded me of the Behind The Music album cover from The Soundtrack Of Our Lives, a band who I've never quite forgotten about but haven't had the urge to listen to for such a long time. I wrote up some notes while waiting for the train and checked the internet again, also I transferred the notes I'd written on my phone onto paper in case I accidentally deleted them. I got the slow train back to Wolves and then drove the rest of the way home, and felt fortunate that I had a bit of a lie-in the next morning as I didn't have to arrive at work until 9:30am. This was another great show from Gruff, and my lack of specific expectations was helpful, although hearing Whale Trail and I Love EU would have been particularly nice!
Setlist
Frontier Man
The Club
Oh Dear!
Limited Edition Heart
Take That Call
Drones In The City
Negative Vibes
Same Old Song
Architecture Of Amnesia
Selfies In The Sunset
Colonise The Moon
Gwn Mi Wn
Shark Ridden Waters
Lonesome Words
Candylion
Liberty (Is Where We'll Be)
American Interior
No Profit In Pain
Sensations In The Dark
Cycle Of Violence
Gyrru Gyrru Gyrru
If We Were Words (We Would Rhyme)

Mark: 8.5/10