Live Review
Blossoms
Night & Day Café, Manchester
February 22 2014
Words/Photos: Leanne Crowley
On a wet Manchester night the stage is set for Blossoms, who may be third on the bill but who are already establishing themselves as a band to swoon the crowds with their take on psychedelia.
The venue, Night & Day Café in Manchester’s ‘place to be seen’ Northern Quarter is a warm and intimate venue that tends to attract a crowd there because they want to be there, and not because they just happen to have stumbled in from the street. Tonight it is packed to capacity, anticipation rising.
Blossoms take to the stage to a tick-tock guitar effect which seamlessly builds into ‘You Pulled a Gun on Me’. Not as polished as the recorded version perhaps, but as the band ease into the song the effect is raw, but powerful; the wider vocal range on offer here from singer Tom Ogden proves enchanting. The crowd draws nearer, intrigued by this black clad five-piece.
Rolling straight into ‘The Urge’, a song which offers a heavy bass intro - courtesy of Charlie Salt - merging with the ever-present organ beauty of Myles Kellock. The focus here is on the keys, with the drums setting the pace and the guitars melting into the background, before the song is brought to a sudden end that brings applause from an appreciative crowd.
Next it’s time to take a trip back to the heart of the summer of '67 with ‘Lava’. The swirly vocals enchant, but the dominating feature is the keys once more. ‘Cut Me and I’ll Bleed’ is of a slower tempo with more focus on the vocals, but nevertheless there is a psych organ crescendo in the background; guitar riffs from Josh Dewhurst that smack of the infamous ‘Light My Fire’, echoing throughout. This is the longest of Blossoms' numbers, and the stop-start towards the end allows the vocals to work their magic before normal service is resumed and the drumming of Joe Donovan kicks in once more. It's enthralling stuff.
‘Stranger Things’ is so Doors-esque that the audience are hard pushed to believe it’s not actually a cover. No insult to the band, but indeed rathermore an tribute to how established as musicians they are to have the ability to write and perform such a superb-sounding song. At its conclusion, birthday wishes to friends in the crowd show the Manchester based roots of the band, and everyone loves home grown talent after all.
Penultimate offering ‘Madeleine’ is the most mainstream sounding of their songs, with the chorus characteristic of the neo-psych movement at the moment. Here there is lesser focus for the first time on the organ and prominence moves to the drums and guitars. This track also features a heavy guitar instrumental, something so far uncharacteristic of Blossoms. The set is brought to a close with a polished performance of ‘Blow’, showing off the skills of the band to the crowd - as well as leaving that feeling of wanting more. It also leaves the dwelling afterthought of what more this band can achieve and how they can develop. A very exciting prospect for the future.
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