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Rebecca Taylor of Slow Club actually spent much of her support act standing next to me in the crowd, cheering louder than anyone else. Her presence there went largely unnoticed - it was only when her own turn came to take to the stage that her presence ushered silence for the first time. Well, with a little persuasion; “We’re gonna play some stuff off our new record and some of them are quite quiet” she announced in her local Sheffield accent, “So shut up”.
Alongside band mate Charles Watson, there were no declarations of undying love for every one of their fans then, no nicknaming them “my Slowies”, just honest humour and flashes of genuine humility. The same is true for the band’s songs, which they perform with an enthusiasm that, given they chose to forgo better known tunes for darker, often lyrically complex pieces from their new album, could have easily fallen by the wayside. Indeed, it is a hard balance to strike between moving the audience and boring them - and Slow Club, for the most part, managed the former with relish.
When they did turn to more upbeat songs, which are by no means weaker, Taylor banged expertly on her drum kit at the front of the stage, flinging her head about clearly immensely enjoying herself - an enjoyment that was unavoidably contagious. Both demonstrated live vocal abilities that have made distinct progress since their debut album, each being allowed their time to shine when one stood back (or sat down in Taylor’s case) while the other gave an all-but solo performance. Whilst these were impressive and sometimes poignant, they sometimes edges towards becoming slightly insular - taking themselves to a place where the audience struggled to join them.
There was certainly no ostentation in the band’s rapport with the audience though; in fact they seemed to talk to them collectively as they might an old friend - perhaps as a tactic for avoiding being intimidated by their ever growing audience . After listing off who sat where during their “overpriced” trip to Betty’s, renouncing York’s Jorvik Centre as “utterly disappointing” and lamenting the quality of its Topshop, Watson concluded with “Overall, York, you need to buck your ideas up”. We’ll do our best. Perhaps a trip to Willow might have been more successful.
No need for Slow Club to buck their own ideas up though; a clear enthusiasm for their new material coupled with undisputable talent gives this set a spark of musical energy. York may have disappointed them in the quality of its cream tea and Viking re-enactments; but they most certainly didn’t disappoint York.
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