Review: Goat, SWX

When we heard Swedish psychedelicists Goat were returning to Bristol, we were more than eager to attend.  Ask anyone who has ever seen them live and you can almost guarantee they will say it was one of the best live performances that they have ever witnessed. The experimental collective have created a completely original fusion of styles embracing many historical curiosities from across the globe. The mysterious band could be described ‘electrified tribalism’ and, while their aptly named debut World Music was hailed one of the best albums of 2012, unless you have seen them live, you can’t comprehend quite how unique they really are.

Then we found out the venue hosting these hypnotic incarnations was SWX. Yes, that’s right the place formerly known Syndicate, the building most of us believed would remain a crappy commercial club forever. We knew the building had been transformed into a live music venue with a state of the art lighting and sound system, but it’s fair to say it can be hard to shift the memories of screeching freshers and sleazy men hovering around a sticky floor grinding to Drop It Like Its Hot. Pushing venue preconceptions aside, we made our way to what would turn out to be one of the best mid-week gigs we have ever been to.

The moment we entered SWX we realised that the building had finally found its true identity. The layout was far more suited to a live music venue than a club, with a set-up rivalling that of the O2 Academy. As with many mid-week gigs there was a really mixed age group. Normally if you choose to go out on a work night you are there for the love of the music and not just to get shit-faced, but I think on this occasion there was more to it than that. Goat don’t conform to any sub-culture; they don’t even consider each member to have an individual identity. Instead they act as one complete entity, inviting the audience to join them in the formation of an un-stereotyped, un-defined complete ultimate being. In other words, literally anyone can get sucked into their orbit, not just hipsters or emo kids.  

First to grace the stage were josefin öhrn + the liberation. Their modern psychedelia was a suitable warmup for Goat and the mystic and tribal connection between the two bands was clear, but where Goat make a virtue of their individual anonymity the stunning Öhrn worked the seductive front-woman stereotype. There is no doubt they are a great band and we look forward to buying their album Mirage but performance-wise they are a huge contrast to the inclusive, gender-neutral performance of the headlining act. 

Then it was time for Goat. Smoke filled the stage and the intoxicating conjuration began. They mesmerised the audience from the moment they stepped on stage and kept grooving melodically for the full two-hour set. Dressed in their usual outlandish masks and multi-coloured robes, they started with a few more instrumental tracks from their new album Requiem and then built up to the ridiculously catchy rhythms and wailing vocals of World in Music. The set felt like a journey rather than a load of separate songs. Disco Fever, Run To Your Mama and Goatman are probably their most well-knows tracks, and they did well to place them nearer the end of the event. 

Suddenly it was 11pm and time to leave. SWX was the perfect venue for this type of evening and it’s great to see our preconceptions completely squashed. 

Top band. Top night.