17 May 2007 (gig)
25 May 2007
In Jo Brand’s early years as a stand-up all her jokes had the same rhythm – two lines of iambic quadrameter. The first line would go de-dum-de-dum-de-dum-de-dum, rising in pitch. Then she’d pause, and the punch line would go de-dum-de-dum-de-dum-de-dum, falling in pitch. It was a relief when she abandoned this and just talked. On reflection, I’m not sure that she did this for years, it just felt that way.
The Archie Bronson Outfit have the same problem. Whatever the other two do, the singer phrases every line of every song the same way. This was a small annoyance at first, but it grew to irritate me totally as the gig went on. It made the whole thing drag. Then the music got stuck. It felt as if we were in a nightmare where Duke Ellington was playing two bars from the start of Ko-Ko over and over, sometimes softer, sometimes louder.
The only thing that distracted me was watching the drumsticks. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a drummer’s hands describe such a large arc. His drumsticks travel a fantastic distance as he plays, and as a result they move so fast. They go faster than your eyes can keep up with, giving the effect of watching a movie of him playing drums. If only the singing on the soundtrack had some variety.
