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Nominated for last year’s Mercury Music Prize for Day of the Jackal, Conor O’Brien’s Villagers have achieved much critical acclaim, and based on that album, justifiably so. Since Villagers was born O’Brien has predominatly been performing as a solo artist (for economic reasons as much as anything else) and his clear, literate, and subtly passionate songs have endeared him to a young audience that will always appreciate sophisticated song craft mixed with intelligent wordsmithery. But tonight, the subtleties of his often downbeat music is often lost with a full five-piece band who can’t quite gel behind the acoustic intricacies of O’Brien, a combination of a murky live mix and perhaps a lack of road testing. His voice, reminiscent of Roger Chapman (of 60s/70s band Family) is clear and erudite on the quieter/solo numbers, but otherwise lost in the mix.

Komedia, 2 July
Rating:
Jeff Hemmings

The Edinburgh Festival is effectively a tradeshow, a place where comedians can ply their wares like a live shopping channel for comedy. As such these previews can be interesting nights. The premise (for those who don’t know) is that acts bring new or half formed material to ‘try out’ in front of a forgiving audience. The theory being by the time the show gets to Edinburgh it will be tight and hopefully brilliant. The shows were rough but both Widdecombe’s wry and languid look at life compared to Walsh’s energetic mix of stupidity and boyish exuberance will be just that. Top notch observational comedy. 

Ropetackle Centre, Shoreham, 3 July
Rating:
Lee Stevens

The electronic/jazz fusion still works for The Cinematic Orchestra, who delivered a beautiful, nearly beatific set on the seaside, with bandleader Jason Swinscoe imperiously conducting proceedings from behind his laptop and decks. A smattering of new songs and the usual well-judged improvisations saw their efforts rapturously applauded. In effect, they produced three shows with one performance; this seemed to be a gig as much appreciated by the wild-eyed, nodding throng at the front, the youngsters under the promenade who couldn’t get in, and the mellower souls mopping up the last of the day on the beach.

Concorde 2, 30 June
Rating:
Jim Milnes

You can eat and drink to your heart’s content but let’s face it you go to Comic Boom for the comedy, and cracking comedy it was too. Running in at over two hours with eight acts to digest, it’s well worth the money. Stand-in host Paul McCaffrey got the well-oiled audience going and bubbling along nicely throughout the night. The stand out acts were Lawrence Tuck; nerdy and awkward but dark and twisted, and the anarchic David Trent. Using multi-media to the full, his act was progressive, playful and painfully funny. I’d happily watch him for two hours on his own.

Komedia, 30 June
Rating:
Lee Stevens