Tuesday 22 of February
Tunng are quite the busy bunch. Having released three albums since their 2005 debut Mother’s Daughter and Other Songs, the Londoners treated the East Brunswick Club to a rather enjoyable set of their songs on this evening, with a focus on their newest album …And Then We Saw Land.
What is so likeable about Tunng is that they have such a recognizable sound. Mike Lindsay, Sam Genders and Becky Jacobs sing their songs in a harmony of three voices. Add a laptop to this, two wicked guitar players, samples and bits, steady rhythms and the result you get is Tunng. They play tonight’s gig with irresistible enthusiasm and this is immediately picked up by their audience.
Starting the set is a song from their newest album, a gentle, soft opening, with a chorus with a strong rhythm, and featuring a star shaped tambourine – ‘Don’t Look Down Or Back’ is mesmerizing. Second is ‘Take’, in a stripped down version that brings out the lyrics – extra drums are added, giving the dreamlike song a powerful feel.
Next up is the catchy It Breaks, with added sound effects. These make it an even more interesting song in an already thinly crowded genre. Mike Lindsay turns out to be a very expressive guitarist, swinging his guitar back and forth as if cradling a baby, and in the course of the show he proves to be the most outgoing (and wacky) stage personality of the band. Becky Jacobs is wearing an interesting ‘disco ball’ dress that lights up brightly in red and green under the spotlights and creates an almost hypnotizing dance of light. Tunng play a record-quality show, their songs flourishing even more live, thanks to their stage attitude. The songs are a bit rougher around the edges than on their albums, but it works, and makes them sound genuine.
‘Hustle’ is one of their newer songs. It’s got a nice and steady rhythm and is more upbeat and light than the average Tunng song. Following is ‘Tales From Black’, a “…song about a murderous old woman.” All spotlights are off, except the red ones that light up the band members from below in a spooky reference to blood. The song rests heavily on the great guitar work by Mike Lindsay and Sam Genders and a haunting melodica solo by Becky Jacobs. The crowd forgets about their rowdiness and listens in awe.
‘With Whiskey’ comes with a wink to A-Ha, the well known Norwegian band that scored a huge hit with their genius song (along with equally genius clip) ‘Take on Me’. “It’s such a beautiful crowd in front of us,” says Becky Jacobs, which is met by a shout from someone in the audience: “Marry me!”, along with some other (not all equally decent) proposals. Mike Lindsay answers for her, ensuring they will do “… all of these things, especially marriage.”
Then comes ‘Weekend Away’, Tunng’s song about their “hedonistic nights in Australia”. The song sees chaos on stage – the band members leave their fixed places to dance around, Mike Lindsay seems to tango with his guitar and puts on sparkly silver sunglasses for the occasion. ‘Sashimi’ is a great title for a track about raw fish, obviously. The band members take their previous places on stage, put away wacky sunglasses and are now playing their music like nothing happened in their previous song.
They end their set in style, namely with an optical illusion called ‘the floating sausage’, in which everyone participates. “You don’t even need a sausage” we’re assured, and with this, Tunng burst off into their last song, light and upbeat Hustle, to energetic dancing by band members and crowd members alike.
Not to worry though, after the obligatory encore-protocol, they’re back to play ‘Woodcat’. Their very last number is ‘Bullets’. Two fans manage to storm the stage and dance for a bit before they are kindly escorted off. As the band sang earlier this evening in ‘Woodcat’: “We all had a lovely time/All in for a lovely time/They said it was a lovely time”. Exactly.
-Laura Macek
