Music / Reviews
Review: Art School Girlfriend, Rough Trade – ‘Mix of electronic, rock, pop and a bit of shoegaze-style’
A rainy day after Halloween didn’t stop a sold-out crowd descending on Rough Trade to witness the first night of Art School Girlfriend’s tour.
Celebrating the release of her second studio album Soft Landing, the tour features the Welsh musician featuring a full accompanying band.
Supporting was t l k, an up-and-coming Bristol-based artist. Her work is almost indescribable – part meditative, part ethereal – blending to create something quite unforgettable.
is needed now More than ever
The way she layered her voice on top of itself to create her own backing vocals was truly beautiful and made me excited to go home and listen to more of her music.
Art School Girlfriend seemed to start with a few technical issues in terms of the sound mixing.
The lyrics were drowned out in the first song, as the keyboard and guitars seemed to be playing a bit too loud for the speaker system, creating a bit of feedback. However, this seems to be remedied after the first track.
After this initial hiccup, we were treated to a great 45-minute set featuring classic tracks as well as debuts of new material that had never been performed live before.
Art School Girlfriend’s songs are what I could describe as a fairly eclectic mix. Throughout the ten plus songs she and her band performed you could see a mix of electronic, rock, pop and even a bit of shoegaze-style vibes.
The tracks from the second album felt more intense, with faster beats and heavier instruments, but these were delicately contrasted with some of the older tracks – creating a balanced performance that felt both warm and cold at the same time.
This change in vibe was often accompanied by skilful light work, with muted, bright tones washing over the band during slower numbers, while darker lights threw intense shadows over them when the speed picked up.
Main photo: @darrencphotography
Read next:
- Review: Peach, Rough Trade – ‘An energetic anger-fuelled band’
- Review: Squid, SWX – ‘They are relentless’
- Review: Baxter Dury, SWX – ‘Full of joy’
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