Gig Review - The Rakes

The Rakes
Audio, Brighton
05/02/07

There’s a peculiar sensation down by the sea tonight. Seeking solace from a miserably wet Monday, those in the know gather in the wondrous underground cavern that is Audio. This is a specially arranged gig to see a band that is rather specially arranged itself.

The excitement brewing inside is partially extinguished by a drab support band. The Social’s moody, melancholic sound borrows heavily from Joy Division; their singer looks like an outside bet in a Morrissey look-alike competition and sounds as awful as said fictional contest. The queue for the bar swells somewhat.

By 9.30 though, London’s finest architects of spiky, surprisingly clever post-punk amble onto the stage. The World Was A Mess But His Hair Was Perfect opens both the set and new album ‘Ten New Messages’ with a nervy surging quality that manages to sound simultaneously serious and inane.

New single We Danced Together is aired early, revealing four minutes of sparkling escapism. “We danced together on the roof at the party/five stories removed from the troubles on the street.” Lyrics of charming simplicity glide over jagged guitar, while smiles appear involuntarily throughout the venue.

As new songs Trouble and When Tom Cruise Cries are played the crowd listens politely, struggling to hear singer Alan Donohoe’s words over chugging bass lines. The positive of Audio’s intimacy is counteracted by a lack of clarity to the sound created.

However, this is irrelevant when tracks like 22 Grand Job transform the crowd from courteous viewers of the gig to a rabble of flailing limbs. Onstage, Alan’s dance moves are inexplicably fascinating. He manages to seem suave despite floundering both arms in the air and looking like a manic accountant.

Bassist Jamie Hornsmith’s glazed relaxation contrasts to Alan’s almost menacing twitchiness, fittingly displaying the dimensions of The Rakes’ music. Terror is a frantic burst of agitated paranoia; follow up Work. Work. Work. (Pub. Club. Sleep.) has a dreamy quality buried underneath its ode to modern life’s intricacies.

The contradictory nature of the band is expressed further tonight when the brooding sentiments of Open Book gain slapstick value as the microphone breaks. This is appropriate for The Rakes - their music is intelligent but rooted in fun. They plod a well-trodden path of art-rock commentary on everyday life, yet manage to bring a sense of authenticity and wry wittiness that resounds throughout the set.

This distinctly understated mirth gives way to unadulterated joy as the electrifying assault of Strasbourg closes the set. But it’s the inconsistencies, the quirks, of both the band and the gig that make them, well….special.

Greg Rose