Live Review: Communion New Faces Tour – Manchester
Communion New Faces Tour
Soup Kitchen, Manchester 8th November
Words: Abigail Gillibrand
Communion’s New Faces tour hit Manchester’s Soup Kitchen presenting four artists which I expect we’ll be hearing a lot more from. The venue itself was perfectly chosen for the night. It had that dirty grunge atmosphere, being underground with paint flaking off the walls and loose wires hanging from the ceiling, it made you feel as though you were in an abandoned basement – an ideal setting for a scene from Saw. But it was the size and intimacy of the venue which made the night so special. With it being so small it was as though you were selected with a handful of other people to watch the performance. Standing in the centre of the crowd made it seem like they were singing to you and you alone.
Photo: Abbie Jennings
The fresh faced Pixel Fix started the night with their tunes Fall and Rosa to name a couple. Being so young it was amazing to hear how they’d mastered their instruments and created such a polished sound. If you weren’t any the wiser you could have thought they’d been around for years. They sounded like The 1975 but a lot more guitar heavy with a rawer edge. Frontman Marcus smouldered down the microphone during Rosa, his dark yet soulful voice stirring up the crowd before entering a crescendo of whirling guitars and mad drum beats. With these being the opening act, you knew you were in for a good night.
Photo: Abbie Jennings
To take the stage next was Kimberly Anne. Her stage presence seemed effortless as she managed to involve the crowd at so many points throughout her slot. It was an acoustically driven set with Bury It There and La La being the main crowd pleasers. The centre piece of the stage was a gorgeous looking wooden xylophone which Kimberly explained had come all the way from Africa. She played a riff on the xylophone and looped it, when adding in some maracas it made the whole thing sound very tribal. Teasing us with a cover of the 90s hit Show Me Love and finishing with her own Liar, Kimberly definitely left the crowd pumped up and itching for more…
Photo: Abbie Jennings
Not quite psychedelic but not quite indie, Fyfe sit comfortably somewhere inbetween. Their set was very synth orientated with synthetic drums, loops and effects, the two piece created an eerie and otherworldly atmosphere. They played Solace, For You and Conversations amongst many more placing them in the same box as bands such as Temples. They created a very mellow yet sincere vibe and were slightly haunting through their echoic vocals.
Photo: Abbie Jennings
However, I must say the night was stolen by the Nottingham quintet, Amber Run. Entering the stage to cheers and having banter with the crowd about a specific incident of Joe Keogh’s flies being down, they really did put on a good show. They have an indie rock feel to them but also a bit of folk going on – with songs like Noah you can’t help but hear some resemblance to Mumford and Sons. They smashed through their songs Pilot, Spark and I Found and also played a new song called 5am – a further teaser as to what will feature on their debut album, set to be released March next year.
You can hear the bands on Soundcloud, and if you haven’t already checked them out then waste no more time…
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