Camera Obscura, Sean Paul and Tegan and Sara gigging in Manchester this week

Camera Obscura – Academy 2, Wednesday 5^th June, 19.30, £11. adv. 

They’ve been somewhat unfortunate, Camera Obscura. Had it not been for Belle and Sebastian getting there first, their name might have been bandied around much, much more than it has. They share the same literate, melodic, and often pensive and observant template as their more celebrated Glaswegian counterparts, and in Tracyanne Campbell, a front woman and vocalist with a gorgeously ruined, sonorous and nuanced voice, which serves as the band’s focal point. Campbell almost always cuts a rather forlorn, solemn figure on stage, and over the course of an entire set, it wouldn’t be unforgivable to feel slightly sad for yourself and for her. That said, her demeanour mirrors that of the music, and Kenny McKeeve’s sparkling, twinkling guitar forever instills cheer and high spirits which offset Campbell’s deeper yearnings.

And so to the songs. Much of Camera Obscura’s material is lovely, but their very best tracks truly are excellent, and, by turns, stunning and genuinely moving. Their current set-list for 2013 is a corker; ‘Lloyd, I’m Ready To Be Heartbroken’ is their finest hour, with McKeeve’s driving, joyous riff radiating heat all around Campbell’s urgent, vulnerable delivery. Better still however is Carey Lander’s organ in the mid-section, tapping on all of your tender spots and standing as the act’s most affecting moment. Numbers such as ‘James’ are stately, poignant tales of woe, ‘Oh James. You broke me. I thought I knew you well’ while ‘Honey in the Sun’ is a much more mellow translation of exposure and deep affection - all trumpets and, ultimately - happy, adoring vibes.

If sometimes wistful, sometimes jovial, articulate, indie-pop is your bag, Camera Obscura are well worth £11 for a ticket. By the same token, if you’re a Belle and Sebastian fan... need I say more?

Camera Obscura’s ‘Lloyd I’m Ready To Be Heartbroken’, and a happier Tracyanne Campbell (it appears that she’s been drinking!) :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfmPF5FBuXQ

 

Sean Paul – The Ritz, Thursday 6^th June, 19.30, £33.99



I can’t say I ever anticipated penning this sentiment, but here it goes; in terms of damn catchiness, only The Beatles can rival Sean Paul for producing track after track of ‘stuck in your head’, ‘melt on your brain’ songcraft. Not only that, but you actively embrace the process; Paul’s best tracks hug your mind, and you hug them back, rather than them headbutting you and you headbutting them back (see Bieber, pp. Blank).

To my increasing surprise, Paul’s grip on accolades extends even further. ‘Winner of Best Song in which only Four Words can be Understood’. “Deport”, “report”, “court” and “support” are all as clear as day on his very first single, ‘Deport Them’, but any other lyrical content is completely and utterly beyond my ears. As a compulsive fiend for lyrics, this would usually catapult me into a coma, and a non-diabetic one at that, but such is the sheer ecstacy and bounce of his debut track, it’s forgiven.

And so to all of those insanely catch tracks. ‘Gimme the Light’, ‘Get Busy’, ‘Like Glue’, ‘Temperature’, ‘Give It Up To Me’ and ‘We Be Burnin’’ make up a staggering list of irresistible tune after irresistible tune, the formula for which is enchanting: Paul’s resonant, cocksure, come-to-bed croon, coupled with production tighter than Mick Jagger’s purse strings and very straightforward subject matter: the act of seduction and getting laid. For the dance and r’n’b arena and its many movers and shakers, Paul simply couldn’t fail.

 His newer material doesn’t quite hit the same, faultless mark as second album Dutty Rock and its successor The Trinity. Singles ‘Got 2 Luv U’, ‘She Doesn’t Mind’ and ‘Hold On’ from last year’s release, Tomahawk Technique don’t pack the same punch due to an increased use of synths and softer, more radio-friendly beats. But Paul etched out his legacy years ago. And he is the only man sporting a Mohican in 2013, so give him his dues. The man is a must-see. Get busy and book your dutty ticket. Or give it up to me. 

Sean Paul easing through a live performance of 'Get Busy' last year:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15TsVyqn9Q0

 

Tegan and Sara – The Ritz, Saturday 8^th June, 18.30, £19.99

Canadian identical twins Tegan and Sara’s musical endeavours stretch back as far as 1999, with each subsequent release receiving greater and greater critical acclaim. Their music certainly isn’t pioneering, and it’s difficult to shake off significant similarities between the sisters and the likes of Sheryl Crowe and K.D. Lang. However, the twins both sing with striking conviction, and this, in conjunction with their conversational lyricism and absorbing harmonies, transport you right to the scene of a relationship fracturing for example, or to an event of confusion, which the duo craft and re-craft and recreate still.  It’s hard to resist the lure of ‘Living Room’, and its exploration of the perils of investing too much time and thought in other peoples’ lives, and the charming keyboard in ‘Back In Your Head’.

Nevertheless, the formula can become slightly bland if you happen to sequence several of their tracks one after the other, and that would be my chief concern if I were to attend a gig of theirs. Songs which in isolation are very easy on the ears, such as ‘Alligator’ and ‘Arrow’, lose some of their considerable appeal if preceded by two or three others. The duo’s ‘cute’ stage persona probably isn’t to everybody’s taste either though it’s hardly all that detrimental to their cause.

All in all, if you’re 1. A teenage – mid twenties boy / girl 2. Possess pop punk / folk leanings 3. Utter “Awwww” when something cutesy-wutesy is said and 4. Don’t require a great smattering of variety from music, Tegan and Sara would certainly be worth a gander. If two of the four criteria apply – still worth a watch. Anything less – don’t bother.

Terrific live performance of ‘Living Room’:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmFgv7gOMXY