LIVE: Du Blonde @ Roundhouse Rising 20.2.15

It was the first time I’d been in the ‘Sessions Studio’ rather than the main area but as we delved into the studio, we were greeted by the venue resident, Kaity Rae who delivered several well performed country esc tracks. For only a seventeen year old, she’s a strong singer and guitarist (although not wearing a typical checked shirt was disappointing).

After the departure of Kaity, Gwilym Gold arrived and performed a slick if not fairly downbeat set. For those not familiar with the artists, Gwilym is a piano oriented singer with a style similar to The XX, but sung by Chris Martin on the day his dog died; very smooth and stylish, if not a tad depressing. Gwilym’s a very talented singer, but sadly didn’t seem to fit the rests of the acts in comparison to the other more cheerful and upbeat artists, do expect more from this chap though.

The next artist, Charlie Cunningham gave the crowd a much needed cheerful relief. This young lad is another acoustic artist, not too dissimilar to Maverick Sabre or Michael Kinwanuka. For the duration of the set, he performed a varierty of singles to many a whoop from the crowd. The lad was perky and upbeat but for now, just lacks that edge to makes him stand out from thousands of other acoustic singers.

As the night drew to a close, the final act Du Blonde arrived. It was revealed that this was actually the first night the band had performed together and they showed remarkable cohesion. The diminutive frontwoman, Beth Jeans Houghton, bossed the staged throughout the set and delivered a great set. Du Blonde’s sound is not too dissimilar from the The Noisettes and the Ting Tings, if the Ting Tings were any good. Lots of bouncing and romping and a lot of fun.

Unfortunately due the four artists playing relatively short sets, it was difficult to get to know these artists better. Either way the Roundhouse delivered a night that showcased a few acts that we may be seeing again in the very near future.

@spikykeir