A night for something completely different. Reluctance on the part of others makes me slightly late, so I tragically miss all the support bands. Whoops and catcalls greet me as I approach the Cube and the whirls of gypsy reels played on frantic violins leap into the air. It's a struggle to get close, even to get down the stairs as the enthusiastic audience have filled every available space.
I watch a strange girl concentrating extremely hard on her own feet, which seem to be possessed by the music. There is fear there I think, she is afraid that if she stops bouncing, they will carry on regardless. Her friends back away, dodging her wild hands. It's a mating dance, I am told. I think perhaps she is a bit too far gone even for that, another soul lost in the moment. A few tunes later, the party dies down and the band announce that they are going to be inside in a bit to play their real set.
The Luminescent Orchestrii are two violins, guitarron and resophonic guitar/harmonica/melodica. They all sing, and the music veers wildly off into freeform jazz, hip hop, tragic ballads, klezmer and very Eastern European folk. Sometimes it is all these things, sometimes it is indefinable. It is always fun.
The small cinema/auditorium puts them in more of a 'concert' mode and the guitarist tells us to not be afraid to dance and if anyone behind you complains then 'fuckem'. Of course this falls on somewhat deaf ears, although one reveller takes up the offer and through the gig leaps around on his own while everyone else acts terribly English about it all, myself included.
The gig is in many ways, quite incendiary. There are a couple of moments where the 'gypsy jazz' gets a bit too much - too anarchic and dissonant for my ears, but the dance music and folky hiphop with human beatboxing is great. The more traditional tunes are fantastic, covering a wide range of styles from frenchy folk to full on klezmer and still the guys at the front are jumping around.
For the encore, the band do a slow number and have to stop because the guitarrist can't concentrate with the drunken antics down at the front. You'll have to sit this one out, dudes, please, he begs, laughing. Being drunk, they enjoy being the centre of attention and the band stops again. No seriously guys, sit the fsck down! The laughing a bit strained now.
It certainly is a big gypsy knees up. There are rumours that the party continues into the night, but I just buy the CD and go home happy.
sounds like a top night out.
Yeah it really was, it's not often you get to see folky stuff of this calibre in Bristol!
...and the CD really is fantastic!
Still waiting for them to make me their friend on My$pace though.