Heading up to Club Academy, for the first time in a number of years and I had forgotten how cramped the stage was. The seating around the venue though is a welcome change from most of the other academy venues, it is the most intimate of them, although down in the bowels of the building the phone signal was non-existent.
Waiting for the first act to come on and there is a plethora of cheesy 80’s stuff coming out of the PA. Which as it would turn out was the perfect set-up for Otto Von Schirach. To describe him as eclectic would not do it justice, indeed sitting here several hours later I’m honestly not quite sure how to describe him.
A one-man IDM (Intelligent Dance Music) and Breakcore musician, the energy on stage was chaotic, and if you have read any of my reviews so far, you’ll know that for me that’s a very good thing for me. I have to say I quite enjoyed the set; it was an absolute melting pot of styles and was quite bonkers.
There were sections reminiscent of 90’s rave, drum and bass, hip hop, 80’s TV themes, whilst Otto would randomly run back and forth across the stage shouting about the Bermuda Triangle, Miami, poltergeists, demons, and dancing like pterodactyls because of ancient blood in our veins (honestly, No clue either). It was like a conspiracy theory compilation video with a beat to it. Honestly, quite enjoyably nuts, although playing to a notably smaller crowd than the headliners would it has to be said there was plenty of dancing and call and response during an extended section about triangles.
The Interlude is permeated with a soundtrack of classical piano plays, as I spaff yet more of my pension fund on merch. Sorry son, your inheritance will almost certainly consist exclusively of an enormous pile of moth-eaten band T-shirts.
Tension doesn’t build in the air; the piano music is keeping the atmosphere that of a sophisticated soiree. At one point I’m waiting for one of the security guards to offer me a Ferrero Rocher, instead, he tells me that I can only take notes on the left-hand side of the stage, not on the right, and I should move. After a reasonably lengthy changeover considering what I’ve been used to at m2tm, Igorrr takes to the stage. The crowd erupt, and rightly so as the set to follow was unreal.
As well as the mad scientist vibe of Igorrr, there’s an operatic quality to Igorrr, and I don’t just mean the obviously operatic vocal style and indecipherable lyrics. When you see them live there’s a theatrical nature to the proceedings. It’s not just a bunch of songs, but rather an energetic narrative flow. The power and the bombastic nature of the whole thing make me feel that this must have been what it was like when Opera was new and exciting and not the stuffy affair it may seem today.
When not performing the band members leave the stage so that only those contributing are visible. The tension built and light and darkness juxtaposed via sublime soprano vocals from new vocalist the incredibly talented Aphrodite Patoulidou and brutal harsh vocals of JB le Bail (Svart Crown). Partway through the set, a technical issue with the microphone means we’re treated to the full power of Aphrodite’s voice as she projects her voice to the audience, without the PA to assist keep them entertained whilst the offending cable was fixed, what a voice, I highly recommend watching some of her singing video’s on youtube.
The majority of the set is taken from the latest release Spirituality and Distortion, which is an absolute tour de force of an album, The remainder of songs from 2017’s Savage Sinusoid, and a couple from 2010’s Nostril. The song choice is excellent, and they have the crowd eating out of their hands, there’s a real joy on stage during the performance. By the time we hear the closing song ‘Very Noise’, a solo piece by Gautier Serre the genius behind Igorrr, the rest of the band are running around the stage, banging their heads and enthusing a similar joy that the audience is reflecting back to them. Watching it from the sidelines just puts a huge smile on my face. What a great gig
Set list
Intro + Bulldozer Paranoid Italiano
Spaghetti Forever
Hollow Tree
Nervous Waltz
Downgrade Desert
Camel Dancefloor
Tout Petit Moineau
ieuD
Parpaing
Polyphonic Rust
Pavor/Caros/Viande
Opus Brain
Himalaya Massive Ritual
————–Encore—————–
Cheval/Apo/Robert
Very Noise
Buy Igorrr music and merch: https://amzn.to/36qbN70
WORDS AND PHOTOS BY RICH PRICE
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