27 February 2020
Not your typical Review:
ORCHESTRAL RENDITION OF TARANTINO’S SOUNDTRACKS
Well… when they say “doors open 7pm, gig 8-10pm”, what they really mean is,
– bar opens 7pm
– club space opens 7:45
– gig starts 8:20
– 30 mins of music
– 25 min break
– 30 more mins of music
– gig over 9:45
That said, having gotten there at 7:35, I was queuing outside the main space doors whilst everyone else was drinking, which then meant I got to sit on one of the very few platforms around until the start and during intermission, as well as stand on it during the show and not get trampled.
The orchestra is 3 violins, 1 viola, 1 cello, 1 sax, 2 horns, and 1 trombone. Lovely. The band is base guitar, lead guitar, and drums. Not bad. Two singers singing the lyrics they are reading from phones clipped to the mics. Dubious.
It baffles me why it is so hard to work a soundboard. What is the point of having a 9-piece orchestra when all you can hear is base and drums? I couldn’t make out the words to the songs I _knew_ let alone hear the violins. The sound improved in the second half, but not massively so.
Speaking of sound, the space is in a brick basement, so acoustics are pretty swell. The volume stayed stable throughout the gig at 115 dB. Yes, I have an app for that. In case you don’t know, 115 is the volume of a chainsaw (which is louder than a motorcycle at 110). A friend tells me that the recommended dosage of this level of noise is 4 mins per week. Good thing I had earplugs…. sitting safely on my dresser where I forgot them this morning. Sigh.
People trying to twist in a packed club is funnier than I expected. Having to listen to a terrible rendition of “Bang Bang” with the singer getting a chunk of the words wrong whilst reading them is less funny than I thought.
On balance, it’s a good idea. The selection of songs was reasonable. I got my money’s worth of enjoyment out of it and had great time (would’ve been even better with earplugs). For the love of humanity, someone learn to balance the sound!!!
Cheapskate enjoyment value: £2 for the novelty.
P.S.: After reading this review, my friend Susanne told me that music venues are required to have free earplugs behind the bar. They will be rubbish ones, but it’ll still be better than nothing. Wish I’d known, but grateful for the knowledge in case this happens to me again.