Camera Obscura Shepherds Bush Empire, London 23/4/09
3/5
By: Matt Tomiak
Camera Obscura aren't particularly interesting to look at, their level of participation with the audience here never rises above merely "perfunctory" and they don't appear to be influenced by a great deal of music made after 1970. So why is anyone still listening to 4AD's unassuming Scottish ensemble, admittedly much beloved of the late John Peel but altogether less cherished by the record-buying public at large?
Well, as sagacious arbiters of pop taste such as Paul Morley (stood in rapt awe next to Rockfeedback this evening) would confirm, they've certainly got the tunes, with oldies like the glistening 60s girl group melodrama 'Tears for Affairs' and theatrical romp 'If Looks Could Kill' peppering highlights from fourth album My Maudlin Career, such as the perky 'Honey In The Sun' and Dylan-ish ramble of 'James'. However, it's singer Tracyanne Campbell's precariously fragile vocals that represent the Glaswegian's real trump card.
The set ends on the Phil Spector-informed 'Let's Get Out Of This Country', at once both gushingly romantic and achingly vulnerable. It provokes the night's biggest response- namely, an outbreak of mild swaying down the front. Sure, Camera Obscura won't be setting anyone's world on fire. But they are certainly capable of sustaining a warm glow at its centre.
Artists in this article: Camera Obscura
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