There’s often something gothic and atmospheric about a night in the Abbeydale Picture House, and even more so since the live music events have been moved to the Fly Tower, due to ongoing issues with the main roof.
The Fly Tower is effectively the combined stage and backstage area: a cavernous, towering space with enough room to house the scenery that would once have been hoisted aloft when the theatre staged plays, back in the day. The space has a bar, a stage, seating and the facility to project images behind the musicians, and as such is perfect for staging intimate gigs such as this one.
Three Galleys Records is based around the Three Galleys recording studio on Abbeydale Road. They describe themselves as a micro-label specialising in folk, alternative and art-house releases, with artists such as ROSH, Bitten Whippet and Ellie Long on their roster. Tonight, they’re putting on three local artists under the umbrella of an evening of alt-folk.
The historic Fly Tower building is an atmospheric small gig setting.
The first is solo artist Eleanor Hooper. Her music is delicate and ethereal, the end result of layers and layers of home recordings, mainly of her own voice, which she uses to accompany her solo singing in her short but lovely opening set. All the while, images are projected behind her which, while not connected directly with the songs, nevertheless provide an other-worldly focus to frame her performance.
Next up is the trio Slow Galleys Drift. The three members are also the main guys behind the Three Galleys label, and as such don’t need to be asked onto the bill tonight – they own it! The group alternates between guitars, synths, bass and fiddle, creating what is, for me, the best set of the night. No two songs are alike, and they weave layers of sounds and vocals that shift and twist with each new song. Try to hunt down their album Hex Up Yrself or the EP When Darkness Comes to get more of an idea of their unique and alternative approach to what can only very loosely be called folk music.
To finish the night, headliner James Green, formerly of Big Eyes Family Players, played a set of guitar instrumentals, which allowed us all to gently wind down as the evening drew to a close. My only complaint with the night had to be sound bleeding in from whatever event was on in the speakeasy bar nearby. Of, and if you venture in here any time soon, wrap up warmly. Atmospheric the Fly Tower may be, but heated it ain’t!
