Seefeel / AR Kane (live at Strange Brew)

Bristol
20 September 2024

Well this is a real trip down memory lane. Not only are Seefeel on the road (the last time I saw them was 1995) with the first new material in thirteen years, but they have brought AR Kane along with them to a sold-out Strange Brew. This relatively new venue is really beginning to find its feet in the city, putting on a whole hose of intriguing bands — we saw Ryley Walker earlier in the week, but it is compact and comfortable with a decent sound system and John Scott of Stereocilia manning the mixing board.

I must admit that I didn’t know what to expect from AR Kane. They haven’t had any new material for thirty years and original member Alex Ayuli is not part of the line-up, but with renewed interest in all things dreampop and all sorts of other nineties acts dusting off their effects pedals, Rudi Tambala and AR Kane deserve another visit.

In fact, Rocket Girl have reissued the two early albums and Vinita Joshi was there on the merch stall, as charming as ever. So, along with main-man Rudi, Maggie Tambala is back in the fold on vocals and electronics, and old friend Steve Benjamin joining in on clarinet, right from the outset they clearly hadn’t lost any of their sparkle as they stretched some old favourites into new shapes.

Rudi is charming and avuncular, his old dreads long gone, instead looking very dapper and leading the trio straight into “Scab” from their first album. There was a really honking clarinet intro that segued into buzzing electronics, Maggie’s breathy, whispered vocals and Rudi’s guitar reverbed to the max. The baggy beat wash and sub-bass burble filled the venue and thirty years were scattered in a heartbeat. 4AD single “Lolita” showcased the ethereality of the guitar, washing over us in waves and showing how much they had in common with the Cocteaus. The fact that Rudi introduced the set as an evening of dreampop with a hint of a smile said it all.

Steve’s clarinet added a nice degree of dissonance to the swirling skank of “Baby Milk Snatcher”, the guitar all slide fuzz adding to the softness of Maggie’s voice. I wondered how many people had come out specifically for AR Kane as the set went down really well, the wall of sound that was “Surf Motel” gradually enveloping us all. They took us on a trip with “Sun Falls Into The Sea”, which apparently had never been played live before, its lullaby beat and careful layering almost burying the clarinet.

With the audience in the palm of their hand, they finished with the Rema Rema-like feedback scorch of their first single “When You’re Sad”, which truly left us in no doubt that their legacy lives on. Rudi didn’t want to leave the stage and you could tell that the audience was also torn.

After a brief turnaround, the remaining Seefeel duo of Mark Clifford and Sarah Peacock, augmented for live shows with bassist Darren Seymour, came on amid blue lights and dry ice, coaxing a wash of noise from the assembled synths as the depth-charge bass of “Climatic Fusion” from Quique set the hairs up on my neck. The mix was great, with every bit of the atmosphere saturated with sound. It seemed to move around the room, a slow build that included alarm tones and Sarah’s distorted echo of a voice. It felt fuzzier and deeper than on record, with the bass beat shaking our faces and Sarah’s voice a mirage of ripples.

The Suicide-shuffle beat of “Polyfusion” allied to the scaffold clang guitar is another trip down memory lane, its muscular bass the only thing keeping it grounded, with the valiant voice simmering and adrift. The psychic fairground of “Multifolds” brings things back up to date, its disorientating disassociation and delayed dissonance appearing like the whole room is a giant tumble drier, taking our minds and rinsing them empty. I can feel my ears revelling as the sounds gyrate and infect and as they move in to the brand new track “TTFM”, Sarah’s guitar changes mood, warm milk tones merging with the otherworldly squeaks and chirps.

“Filter (Bub)” takes us back to Quique again, its warm churchy guitar trailing a slow narcotic beat. There is a full spectrum of physicality here which, considering there are only three people on stage, is pretty impressive and as it draws to a close a kind of out of context violence brews up, pushing at us, hammering our ears and far outreaching the strength of the recorded version.

Seefeel leave us with ears ringing and wide smiles, but are back on after only a couple of minutes and lay into early single “Spangle”; its icy industrial ambience somehow warmed by this live setting and by the affection felt throughout the room. On the strength of this outing and from what Mark has been saying in interviews, there could be plenty of life in this third time around for Seefeel; I know I personally will take away some good memories form this show but also hope for the future.

-Words: Mr Olivetti-
-Pictures: Michael Rodham-Heaps-