Kimya Dawson & Angelo Spencer - Exeter Museum 22/06/07
4/5
By: Dan Monsell
It's quite impossible to hold back a smile, what with the novelty of this whole occasion. We stumble in to Exeter Museum past Gerald the massive stuffed Giraffe, with a brief stop to stare at a Roman suit of Armour on the way in. The former Moldy Peach's request to play interesting venues on this, the 'family tour', might never produce a response better than this. The wide-eyed childlike splendour of wandering around a museum perfectly encompasses Kimya's innocent and optimistic approach to life, whilst reflecting the experience and enlightened knowledge of years of history contained within her words. This doesn't prevent everyone being a bit confused about what to do with themselves, as we usher expectantly into a seated room in the 'Beyond the Frame' exhibition room, surrounded by grand paintings on the walls around us.
This 'family tour' refers to the fact that support on each show comes from the husband and father of Kimya's baby child (herself paraded around the room while we sit around and listen to a few records before anyone plays). Angelo Spencer is not merely a novelty husband act on tour; there to double up as a child minder and roadie, he's also a very fine musician too. The Frenchman by way of the American mid-west compresses even further what The White Stripes did for country inflicted rock and roll, going the whole hog and doing it all by himself. It's just him, a big 'ole electric guitar and a bare bones drum kit operated by pedals in front of him. The simplicity of the set-up makes perfect sense for the raw rock n roll he's going for. His set begins with a declaration that 'some people say that rock and roll doesn't belong in a museum, well f**k them!' Yes, f**k them indeed, this hard-hitting one-man band was fun, and his CDs come in beautiful handmade cotton patches.
In some ways this venue is such an interesting and overwhelming space that even Kimya Dawson seems slightly overcome by the occasion. She apologizes twice during her set for being 'kind of nervous' tonight. If anything the slightly tentative nature of her performance (itself barely noticeable) only adds to how tender everything sounds when Kimya is playing. People often forget that if you really want people to listen it can be much more effective to turn yourself down, rather than make yourself louder. As we sit ever closer to hear Kimya's faint strums and quiet voice, her huge command of the room is unquestionable. Her words speak truths that poignantly stay with you for days after. 'My mother always told me that if you have one bean and see someone with no bean then give them half the bean. You will be more hungry if you eat the bean in front of somebody with no bean, than if you were to share'.
Other highlights include the chunk of children songs from her new baby-inspired album 'Alphabutt'. It's a pretty beautiful thing to see a roomful of (predominately) young adult folk listen attentively to songs that make you feel like a giant baby, sung by a big American lady with tattoos. By the end our faces hurt from smiling so much at the true goodness of such an event. This is surely something everyone should do every now and then in a museum on a Friday night, listen to silly children's tunes, or songs with political and spiritual meaning that value how good it can be to own a bicycle or 'being grounded, humble, and at one with everything'. Better than getting drunk and fighting on a night out perhaps?
At the end it felt right to propose a big group hug to the room (in a town like Exeter most of us at these shows know each other anyway) but this was maybe a step too far. Instead we're happily forced to settle for a roomful of smiles and one of Angelo Spencer's handmade records. Oh, and a bit of time looking at a very interesting 'nature in action' exhibition on the way back out.
Your Feedback
Login to post your comment