Freelance Whales w/ Broken Records – XOYO, London 2/2/11

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Click on any image to enlarge | All photographs by Steven Walker

Broken Records, one of the most promising bands of 2008 haven’t really capitalised on their initial promise. Their first demos and EP hinted that great things were in their grasp; a heady mix of Arcade Fire and Beirut, combined with a live show that, although rough around the edges, suggested a band that with sufficient work could have taken over the world.

They haven’t, and if this set is any indication, they may have missed their chance.

That’s not to say this performance is bad- far from it; their setlist is solid and their instrumental talents beyond reproach – but rather than forging their own path, they remain overly derivative of their influences, both in terms of songwriting and their performance. Their early rawness and enthusiasm has diminished; their hungriness to impress has dulled with time, having been replaced with polished, if stolid, technical competence. There’s moments that recall their early heyday, but for the most part it’s an enjoyable performance lacking the spark to elevate it to a higher level.

The same applies to headliners Freelance Whales. Their original MySpace tracks were joyous affairs, but a surplus of filler on debut Weathervanes meant they never quite gained the critical acclaim one might have anticipated.

This is reflected in their live set – a fun, accomplished show, but a somewhat uneven one. Several songs failed to take off, others obviously tested the band’s vocal skills to limits perhaps beyond their capabilities and the whole set was diminished by the appalling sound at XOYO: “Ruiner of Gigs”.

The synths sparkled, but the vocals sounded shrill over the muted, indistinct guitars; with better acoustics, one could have overlooked the duller moments but even their strongest songs (‘Hannah’, ‘Generator Second Floor’) were attentuated by the murky, inadequate mix.

Not a vintage show, but it’s nonetheless apparent they’ve got the enthusiasm and an ear for melody to make something more of themselves; let’s just hope they build on that, rather than settle down into comfortable adequacy.