Live Review :: Soccer Mommy :: The Shipping Forecast, Liverpool - Sep 9 2018

Live

Soccer Mommy / Brooke Bentham

Shipping Forecast, Liverpool

September 9 2018

Words: Kieran O'Brien

The Shipping Forecast is the intimate and rather warm setting for the Liverpool date of Soccer Mommy’s UK and European tour. The 21-year-old Nashville singer-songwriter (real name Sophie Allison) released the critically acclaimed ‘Clean’ in March of this year, a beautifully melodic record which, as her first studio album ‘proper’, brought Allison’s well-crafted tales of teenage angst and uncertainty to a much broader audience. This widened exposure is evidenced by the already sizeable crowd in the venue’s basement live room as we enter shortly after doors.

Noticeably, there is not a drum kit set up on stage and the initial presumption is that Allison will be performing a stripped-down set without her band this evening. News then filters through that the band have in fact missed their ferry from Dublin and may not make it in time to perform. Any concerns that this could be an evening wasted are quickly allayed as support act Brooke Bentham takes to the stage. Armed only with a microphone and a growling electric guitar, her set is impressive and captivating.

Hailing from South Shields, Bentham is fast gaining a reputation as one of the UK’s most capable and talented young songwriters, and as her powerful voice fills the room it is easy to see why. Brooke’s second song and most recent single ‘Out Of My Mind’ is particularly strong; she informs us it is about ‘her boyfriend not texting back’ and is delivered with such anger and conviction that nobody in the Liverpool crowd would dare risk ignoring a Bentham text in future. The studio version of the track was produced by Bill Ryder-Jones and he is in attendance tonight, visibly impressed by Bentham’s performance and playfully poking fun at her lack of words between songs by shouting ‘do the spiel!’. Ultimately, Bentham’s songs do the talking; with melodies and stage presence reminiscent of Big Thief’s Adrianne Lenker, it would not be a surprise to see her playing much larger rooms than this in the coming years.

(Pic: Kieran O'Brien)

To the glee of the watching audience, Bentham announces towards the end of her set that the headline band have arrived, and, after an impressively quick assembling of the drums and back line, Soccer Mommy takes to the stage. The band immediately rattle through two of what Allison describes as her ‘old’ songs (the oldest of which is just two years old); the spanky guitar lines of ‘Henry’ and plodding drums of ‘Try’ are very infectious and have the room simmering with a palpable energy.

This energy is fully realised as the crowd appreciatively greet the opening chords of ‘Last Girl’, one of the melodic highlights of ‘Clean’. The song is played slower than the studio version but it is no less effective, with Allison’s poetic lyrics about comparing herself negatively to a partner’s ex peppered with Alvvays-esque shimmering guitar riffs and a catchy bass line. Another of 'Clean’s highpoints ‘Your Dog’ is next and a dirty bass sound makes the brutal opening lyric "I don’t wanna be your fucking dog" hit even harder than on record.

The songs from ‘Clean’ translate to the cramped basement venue very well. The intimacy of the room means that none of the charm or relatability of Allison’s lyrics is lost, while the guitars and drums bouncing off the walls only add to the feelings of defiance and insecurity emanating from each song. Following a stellar version of the excellent ‘Cool’, Allison is left alone with just her guitar for three songs.

    (Pic: Saint Vespaluus)

            

The first of these is a melancholy version of Bruce Springsteen’s ‘I’m on Fire’, which as one of Springsteen’s most well-known songs still impressively sounds like definitive Soccer Mommy. Gentle versions of ‘Still Clean’ and ‘Allison’ show Allison is equally adept at performing the delicate as she is sparkling guitar pop, and both sides of this coin are on display as her band return for a rousing rendition of ‘Scorpio Rising’.

In her relatively short career to date, Soccer Mommy has demonstrated she has the rare ability to condense extremely relatable subject matter into catchy four-minute pop songs. It is only a matter of time before she is playing much bigger venues than The Shipping Forecast, making tonight’s gig feel that bit more special than it already was. Go and see her in an intimate venue while you still have the chance.