Live
Chastity Belt + Gang + Blush
Green Door Store, Brighton
September 13 2017
Words/Pictures: Steve Willcox
The Green Door Store is pulling up its 'sold out' barriers for Seattle-based indie poppers Chastity Belt as they stop off on the Sussex coast on their current UK visit.
With punters already pouring in through the Store doors, local country-indie rock-and-blues outfit Blush get things underway as they mesmerise the room with their guitar-driven sound. Vocalist Asya provides a confident front presence coupled with a commanding voice, with its bluesy timbre. The group had a big range of songs and rocked out with a few numbers but ended on the quiet 'Every Night'.
Next up Gang, a four-piece from further round the coast in Margate, are starting to make their own kind of non-sea waves with their recent album, '925 Til I Die', to promote. Their msinly grunge-rock 'n' Slaves-esque vibe soon had the fans swaying out front. Singing duties were shared by the snarling Eric Tormey and drummer Jimi, but it was a good act for the genre and with the added girl thrill of t-shirts off, with bass player Joe Hunt looking like a semi-naked Angus of ACDC - minus the long hair. Songs such ad 'Rawboned', 'Skinny Dipper' and 'Messiah, with its humungus bass riffs, merged with the exploding bass and reverb guitar work from Tuli on 'Enough Nothing'. Definitely a 'gang' you want to be part of.
Having released their third album 'I Used To Spend So Much Time Alone' earlier this summer, Chastity Belt were in no danger of being alone as they played to this ready and waiting Brighton crowd. And the result, a blinding set of perfectly blended songs in the guise of early REM/Coldplay and Cat Power, showed their dark, angsty depths are easily translatable.
Julia Shapiro sings with enough US twang to uplift the desperation of the songs, coupled with wry observations on songs such as 'Cool Slut', 'Pussy Weed Beer', and 'This Time Of Night' where she tells of being “fucked up, anxious, full of fear/How did I get here?”
'Bender', 'It's Obvious' and in particular, 'Sam', were particularly impressive, picking up the crowd and reeling them in. Eric from Gang joins them on stage for the reverb delight of 'Stuck' and drummer Gretchen Grimm took over the vocals for one of the songs. An encore of 'Black Sail' and 'Seattle Party' - both from their 2013 'No Regerts' debut album - both which allow Gretchen Grimm to come into her own with her sensitive, measured drumming. When Shapiro asks on the latter, "are we having fun?", the answer was a resounding "yes", concluding this perfect set of fantastic musicianship that was one of pure joy throughout.
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