Issue 74 / February 2017

44
Bido Lito! February 2017 Reviews
of Seal Cub Clubbing Club, with the help of new
band mates has delighted audiences with their
offbeat, ambitious and infectious sound, which
has caught the imagination of the region.
Drawing a crowd which encompasses nearly
the whole room, the crowd watch, entranced
by the group’s hypnotic stage presence as they
create waves of sound spun through drum
machines, pedals and pre-recorded tracks,
which are only broken by intervals of small talk
or a moment to fix the backing track. Having
drifted in and out of the public’s conscious,
the West Kirby group’s performance leaves
us hungry for their album due in the coming
months.
Having suitably whet our appetite for more
sonic explorations, the modest stars of the
main act walk through the crowd with no
sense of grandeur in the slightest. They finally
find their way onstage with a couple of bottles
of wine whilst they sound check as we gaze
in anticipation, twitching with each twang
of a string, each tap of a pedal. Set up, and
raring to go the group spearhead along into a
sound which engulfs the room, captivating the
crowd with its sheer velocity and volume. The
soaring guitars fly amongst the angelic vocals
of Goswell which are only kept grounded by
the drum beat. Between the epic post-rock
soundscapes come electronic interludes of an
almost 8-bit nature. The sheer drama and awe
of the music is only stopped by a minute to
change up pedals, check setup and have a quick
swig of much overdue wine (after a no alcohol
rule on their arena tour with Placebo).
With a calm and friendly atmosphere, Minor
Victories seem to have cracked the key to the
‘supergroup’: the need for it to come from
a creative space and not one of necessity.
Despite the obvious influence of their previous
projects, Minor Victories seem to have created
something brand new, innovative and truly
hypnotising. It’s amazing and rare to see
musicians of such prowess play such a small
room. As it all comes to an end, the only criticism
we can find is there’s simply not enough. The
show’s not so much a minor victory but a major
success, witnessed by a crowd that know how
lucky they are.
Matt Hogarth
an indie-kid ape man. His physical style may
be reminiscent of his baggy forefathers, but,
within this warehouse monument to futurism,
The Vryll Society are moving forward on the
evolutionary scale of sound with archetypes
Ian Brown, Richard Ashcroft and Tim Burgess
falling further back on the linear timeline. The
Vryll Society’s sound possesses a Northern
soul that is much more trippy, experimental
and likely to take you off the urban hymn book
to higher planes of reality.
With all this talk of creation it might be a
good opportunity to tell you that the songs
they are performing are sexy with a lysergic
intelligence that renders the need for any time
teleportal machine back to the 60s defunct
– although such devices would look right at
home in the Invisible Wind Factory’s space
age surrounds. Their debut single, Deep Blue
Skies is one such mellow stroke over the eyes
of reality, combining dreamscapes and chords
that both anchor the mind and create a sense of
inner spaciousness. That is before our hypnotic
journey is called back in by a drumbeat and the
familiar call to funk of wakka-wakka guitar
riffs to set the crowd dancing. Beautiful Faces
progressively beats and strains before pausing
every now and again for rhythm and euphoria.
The Vryll Society are giving us a stylish yet
experimental ride through psychedelia that
frees itself, and the crowd, with its mix of
polished spontaneity; the quality of each live
song reflecting their daily practice. Michael
Ellis leaves the stage at the end of the set,
while his long-haired counterparts play on
in a rolling instrumental of groove. Formerly
called Dirty Rivers, The Vryll Society are a band
that are beginning to reap the benefits of their
development with Liverpool label Deltasonic
and are undoubtedly on the path to higher
planes of success.
Sue Bennett / @sue_writes
THE VRYLL SOCIETY
EVOL @ Invisible Wind Factory
Within the out-of-town metropolis of the
Invisible Wind Factory, THE VRYLL SOCIETY are
performing a mesmeric homecoming gig to
their large and growing fan-base. Hot off the
back of a UK tour with Blossoms, the lads arrive
on stage with plenty of Scouse swagger and a
highly-polished set of psychedelia. Lead singer
Michael Ellis dances through the dry ice like
The Vryll Society (John Johnson / johnjohnson-photography.com)
bidolito.co.uk