REVIEW: LAURA MARLING AT GLOUCESTER CATHEDRAL (18/10/11)
Laura Marling is currently touring the cathedrals of England with her band and she kicked off the third leg of her tour in Gloucester Cathedral on Tuesday. First and foremost, it should be said that the setting was beautiful. As you can imagine, not much was needed to make the building an inspiring place to listen to and no doubt play music. Subtle lighting created a certain mood and lit up the album artwork behind the musicians beautifully.
The music faded and a bell sounded, ushering people to their seats. Laura and the band where met with a raucous applause, which faded to the sound of ‘I was just a card’ off the new album. Straight away, the reason for playing in a venue such as this became clear. The quiet strings, subtle guitar and timid voice filled the auditorium only to be run over by the drums as they pounded through the hall.
As per usual, Laura was quiet and unassuming inbetween songs, save for a bit of witty ‘cathedral facts’ banter which her and the band shared. This manner, of which she has become known, is as endearing as it is amusing – though her words got a little lost as they bounced around the stone walls, making it a tad difficult to catch the jokes. “Hello, my name’s Laura” she said as she launched into ‘The Muse’, which bounded into a large crescendo and ended dead as the lights cut.
The band left the stage for Laura to play a few numbers on her own, starting with ‘Goodbye England’ and ‘Night Terror’, whistling and all! There were a couple of slips but it added to the performance and released a little bit of tension in such a big room full of quiet people. “You’re a cheery bunch!” she exclaimed as the girls with a banner in the front row stood up and cheered.
The band rejoined her, reminding us that she had been on her own for the last few songs. Even solo, the sound of her guitar and voice echoed around to such an extent that you could have sworn there was someone backing her up. It sounded great when she pushed a little bit, allowing her vocals to soar around the room. Her band was excellent and accompanied her beautifully, never overdoing it and really building dynamics that were very satisfying to listen to and gave plenty space for the vocals.
The only issue with playing in a venue of this magnitude is that, even though the band was playing at a moderate volume, the sound very easily became muddled. It would have been great for some of the instruments to make a bit more of an impact but a compromise was necessary. A sound guy’s nightmare! But it’s not every day you get to see a gig in a cathedral, especially one of an artist whose music is so suited for the place. If you have tickets for any of the other cathedral dates, I doubt you’ll be disappointed. Don’t forget to bring a jumper!
Words: Luke St Leger
Photo: Sarah Gray
