JUANITA STEIN/ IAN JEFFS/ RICKY BOOM BOOM
Portland Arms, Cambridge 2/10/2017
I have been living in musical exile for the summer, moving back to civilisation
from North Cornwall only yesterday and, quite frankly, couldnt
wait to see some artists that werent blues or funk. Newquay only
had one band and they combined the two. I wont lie; not even the
stunning scenery and cheerful Northern immigrants made up for it. For
someone that loves good live music as much as I do, safe to say that
the last few months have been hell.
Whats more, Cornish audiences go to gigs to talk and barely listen
to the bands at all. Cambridge, of course, is usually much more sedate,
going for the awkward gawk and rather polite applause and
it is this reaction that tonights first support act, Ricky Boom
Boom, is treated to. At least the handful of people in the room appear
to be listening but why is no-one here? The gig-going public obviously
dont realise that Ricky is local music lothario, Richard Archer
you may recognise him as the man who was in punk act, Soldiers
of Fortune, alt-country wonders, The Shivers, or, more recently, the
charmingly shambolic and short-lived Biscuits For Bears. A prolific
songwriter hailing from Hunts, and armed with just a guitar (so no boom
boom at all actually), his trademark unpolished style is endearing and
entertaining. With tracks about an evil administrator called Barbara;
a definite theme tune- for me, at least- in the form of Trouble
Will Find You, and ending with Beck tune Pay No Mind,
which is a clear influence, Mr Boom Boom writes a soundtrack to your
tired life about his tired life but in a clever and funny way that means
you should get your arse out of the door a bit earlier so you dont
miss him next time.
And then we come to Ian Jeffs. I have been taught that
if you cant say something nice, say it anyway, which generally
gets me hated so Ill make this brief. Ian Jeffs is a local singer
songwriter who has growly vocals to go with his rather dated often-anthemic
rock. Though no blues/funk, I was nearly hysterical when he started
singing about Sarajevo. Im sorry but why was he getting the raucous
applause? I never have liked Nickelback and I cant get the comparison
out of my head. Perhaps Ive got sand in my ears. Sorry.
Moving on (thank God) and Juanita Stein is the tiny Antipodean former
front-woman of Howling Bells, who were darlings of the music scene about
a decade ago. It is hard not to draw comparisons to her previous band,
particularly as she is backed by a couple of them this evening and not
least when she actually plays one of their tracks, but she is here to
promote new solo album, America. Steins performance
is humble and naturally charasmatic, storytelling about her obsession
with the USA that doesnt veer too far from the path well trodden
but is captivating nonetheless, sounding somewhere between an early
sixties siren and a noughties indie goddess most of the time. When she
invites her Dad, Peter, up on stage to perform, he proclaims her the
best singer in the world. And she really does have a stunning,
seemingly easy, vocal- best showcased in the harmonic and dreamily simple
Stargazer and the classic backroad bar picking of Someone
Elses Dime, though there are many moments to choose from.
I thank her afterwards and tell her it was a beautiful show. I hope
she feels the same as me: its good to be back.
Anna C
www.juanitastein.com
https://www.facebook.com/ianjeffsmusic/
https://rickyboom-boom.bandcamp.com/
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