Live Review
Lola Colt
Electrowerkz, London
November 4 2014
Words: Richard O'Hagan
Photos: Caroline Garden
Lola Colt’s ‘Away From the Water’ is one of the more astonishing debut albums of 2014 and this show is to officially launch that album, but something’s wrong. All of the pieces are in place, but it is as if everything is just a little out of kilter.
Part of the problem is the venue. The shimmering aural onslaught of Lola Colt seems ill-suited to this starkly industrial setting (unisex toilets with no seats, ladies?). And a blistering light show can’t hide the fact that there’s just not enough space on the stage for six people to perform in comfort.
That is probably a contributing factor in a set that is, frankly, a little on the disappointing side. Technically, the band are excellent, you can’t fault them on that, but there’s a big difference between technical perfection and actually performing, and therein lies the problem. Live, all of the light and shade which makes the album such an enjoyable experience disappears, making the show more one to endure rather than enjoy.
Vocalist Gun’s voice barely wavers from the opening key, and this turns the music into some sort of homogenous, Spacemen 3-esque, sonic wall. That it doesn’t play well with an industry crowd largely ignorant of the album itself is obvious, as the conversation level between songs reaches a veritable hub-bub at times.
All of which is a real shame, because Lola Colt have good ideas and are great musicians. But however good songs such as ‘Driving Mr Johnny’ and ‘Heartbreaker’ are, this set pummels you where the album gently massages and it just isn’t as much fun as it sounds.
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