Music / Dan Croll
Review: Dan Croll, Thekla
Ahead of the release of his long-awaited second album, Dan Croll was lured back to Bristol for his third appearance at Thekla.
Wilsen was the support for the evening, playing an acoustic set made up of dark and dreamy songs from her debut album that came out in May 2017. The sound was incredible, with her ethereal voice so pure it filled the room. Every now and then she’d whistle haunting melodies, like birdsong, to which everyone listened attentively.
From the count in on drums, Dan Croll’s band definitely stepped up the energy. Opening with the upbeat Compliment Your Soul from Dan’s debut album, we first caught a glimpse of the fusion between indie rock and afro-beat rhythmic influences in his music. Although they might look like a standard indie rock band, they don’t have a normal band sound. The sound was big with lots going on, and the lovely three-part vocal harmonies melted us all a little bit.
is needed now More than ever
All five band members seemed very happy to be there and were so into the music that their whole bodies were involved in the performance. Complex polyrhythms are a predominant feature of Croll’s music, so they were all moving to a different beat, creating a strangely wonderful offbeat synchronicity in their dancing.
Croll made a very good front man. After the second track, he lost the guitar and started playing shakers, then tambourine. Completely owning the stage, he danced around, looking more like a rockstar than the singer/songwriter he is known as.
It seemed to me that he could do no wrong. The mellow audience who had been watching Wilsen had been replaced by a rowdy and boisterous crowd, continually shouting inappropriate remarks in attempts to catch his attention. In one of his new tracks he forgot the words, and instead of hindering his performance he shrugged it off by saying, “It’s not like I wrote it or anything”, which just made the audience love him even more.
Not only was the music tight, but there was also a full-on light show with strobes flashing in time with the drums. It was a completely immersive experience, and something normally only seen at much bigger venues.
Finishing with Home, Croll ended an incredible gig on a high. The audience sang every word so loudly he didn’t even have to open his mouth. It would have been a waste of his time anyway: you wouldn’t have been able to hear him over the raucous crowd.
Take part in our reader survey at www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/B247 to be in with a chance of winning a meal for two.
Our top newsletters emailed directly to you
