ALUNAGEORGE

Start the Bus, Bristol| November 18th

AlunaGeorge have come from nowhere this year, with their recent second single Your Drums Your Love and debut tune You Know You Like It both receiving heavy rotation on Radio One as well as our personal stereos. Our appetites for AlunaGeorge were then whetted yet again with the prospect of this sold out gig at Start The Bus. Like most of the crowd there, we were eager to see whether AlunaGeorge had any other big hitters in their repertoire, of if they’re likely to become another flash in the pan hype act.

First up though, are The Good Natured. Now, if Crack was feeling good natured we’d say that the three piece possess a certain twilight-pop sensibility, but on this particular evening we feel we’ve seen and heard it all before. Although recent single Skeleton which referentially nods to Siouxsie and The Banshees and Ladyhawke, does show some promise.

Next act to take the stage is electronic musician and vocalist Rudi Zygadlo. As an artist who takes ‘bass music’ characteristics and twists them into mutated, cerebral yet unmistakingly pop tracks, he’s a fitting supplement to the headliners. The title track to this year’s Planet Mu-released Tragicomedies is a highlight, with it’s skittish Skwee-style, Hudmo-esque production values unfolding into soaring vocal lines and noodly guitar riffs.

And then the act everyone’s been waiting for. Aluna Francis comes out looking mesmerising, although there’s little interaction with the crowd as producer George Reid and their backing band get proceedings underway. Just A Touch is an early standout, and by the time that You Know You Like It  is unleashed surprisingly early in the set, everyone is dancing in the crowd. For us this is a bona fide R&B gem, harking back to 90s tracks by the likes of Shola Ama and Brandy that still strike a chord with our generation, and it’s fitting then that an unexpected cover of Montell Jordan’s This Is How We Do It is next up, which is met by cheers from the sections of the crowd who’re old enough to remember. Aluna messes up the vocal halfway through and recovers, exclaiming ‘Let me hear you try singing that!’ in way that’s totally endearing, as opposed to embarrassing.

A ballad comes next, and the band build it back up during the latter half of the set to the now expected climax of Your Drums Your Love. It’s hard to pick out of the eight or so tracks played whether AlunaGeorge have another big single up their sleeves that could propel them to upper heights of the pop charts. But judging by the crowd of young admirers gathered by the sectioned off ‘VIP’ area of the venue at the end of the show, it’s clear they’re halfway there and for now we’re enjoying the rise.

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Words + Photos: Artbeats