LIVE: The Soft Moon – The Dome, London 16.02.18

Opening his set with the title track from his recent album Criminal, The Soft Moon – aka Luis Vasquez – gave a seamless, captivating performance at Tufnell Park Dome on Friday night.  Entering the stage in a haze of smoke and dimmed lights, Vasquez looked and sounded as intense as the new songs on his fourth record. His sold out crowd listened keenly from start to finish, transfixed by his uncomfortable, but deeply absorbing sounds.

Although Vasquez’ vocals were quiet at some points during the performance, the vast, cleanly-cut waves of synthetic noise contrasted superbly with his soft voice – particularly on track ‘Give Something’. His urgent delivery of the lyric “I don’t want to lose my mind, that’s why I keep you so close” was a poignant moment in the set, and a listening memory that resonated long after the synths stopped playing. Recent single ‘Choke’ was also an intense listening experience, with its bruising, persistent percussion.

As we said in our review of Criminal, The Soft Moon’s confessional writing style means this deceptively named artist is not for the faint-hearted – but he is for those who are brave enough to confront the thoughts that have pushed them to, and ultimately pulled them back from the brink. Seeing him live has not altered our thought processes.

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

Kate Crudgington

Kate Crudgington

Assistant Editor for Gigslutz (2015-2017) Now Co-Founder, Co-Host & Features Editor for @getinherears