Penflick Podcast: The Live Sessions

Photo by Eliot Gill

Anyone that welcomes the return of ‘Later with Jools Holland’ this week will probably wonder what it would be like to be in the audience of such a show. Penflick Podcast cannot get you tickets to see Jools and his pals, but they can invite you to their own take of the programme, focusing on showcasing Brighton’s array of unsigned talent.

They will be continuing their highly successful Live Sessions this week at Belushis Below. This month includes the fantastic Gypsy Squat Pop Project which can only be described as ‘Gypsy squat pop. Dur’ If you want to get to grips with such a genre, you’ll have to come down and see for yourself. To give you a clue, I looked at the list of band members and I can tell you that in addition to vocals, there is a guitar, a sax, a double bass, a trumpet, a trombone and some drums.

Opening the show is singer songwriter Matt Rivers. His songs bounce from upbeat and funky to downright moody, delivered by a great voice with good melodies and hooks.

Main Suport for the night will be Guided By Lights who have successfully blended dance beats with folk guitars, violins and a voice reminiscent of Shane McGowan (I said the voice, not the look). Of course you may be wondering how a live music venue offering 3 different acts over the course of an evening is able to be compared to a television show? The live sets from the evening are being recorded, as are interviews with the band and the audience, all of which will be featured in the Penflick Podcast released early May. If you can’t make it to the event on the 9th, you can always listen to it via the podcast. But of course, listening to live recordings and being in the room whilst it is being recorded are two very different things and you never appreciate the magic and uniqueness of live performance unless you are there at the time…

- Words by Chris Tompkins.

09/04/09 - Belushis Below