To prove the hype surrounding Angel Olsen you need look no further than Mono tonight, the show sold out in advance and the generally delightful setting is rammed, creating almost an almost sweatbox environment.
Brooklyn singer-songwriter Jaye Bartell, who before tonight Rave Child knew nothing about aside from that Twitter says he’s pals with the postman, has already begun when I enter the room and the silence from the already healthy audience is astounding.
It appears everyone has turned up tonight to be whimsically hypnotised rather have a full night out, but it is Monday after all.
Bartell himself delivers his songs in a clear, warm and assured fashion, stopping to light-heartedly comment on his construction crane photography (“like two giraffes looking at each other in the sunset”).
Mid set he’s joined on stage by percussionist Joshua and by Olsen herself, who joins in some charming harmonies on a lovely feeling if bleak track, Olsen stays on for another more sombre affair before Bartell returns the favour by covering Olsen’s ‘Unfucktheworld’, which he comments: “it’s so good that even I can play it”.
It would appear Bartell has all the ingredients push on to be headlining the next time on these shores, yes it feels a little sparse at points and the one track featuring more than just voice and guitar stands out from the rest, but there’s no reason why this couldn’t be incorporated into the whole set, either way tonight he’s captivating enough to whet the appetite for what’s to come.
Chicago based Angel Olsen is riding high after her beautifully composed second album, and first album with a full band Burn Your Fire For No Witness, has seen her popularity rise and rise; now she’s now towards the end of a four-month tour but there’s no sign of fatigue as she comments “the sun is out”, in the nicely day lit venue after a day of torrential rain.
Opening her set with ‘Free’, from debut full length Half Way Home, gives the Glasgow audience their first chance to take in her enchanting warble, which doesn’t let down as it sits prominently on top of bouncing bass in a more beefed up version of the album track.
The popular twangy electronic folk of ‘Hi-Five’ follows as Olsen makes being lonely sound like the most wonderful experience: “are you lonely too?/Hi-Five”.
In saying that it isn’t Olsen’s heart-swelling lyrics that take the front seat this evening, occasionally they are lost in the delivery, but such is that delivery that you don’t really care, Olsen’s dramatic ethereal tones hypnotise the packed venue and the added umph most of these live arrangement carry acts to engross further.
We then move into a settled part of the set as ‘Acrobat’, ‘Miranda’ and ‘Lights Out’ move to more gentle arrangements and let the delivery shine, although the latter does build into a rousing twangy outro.
Some charming banter about her ideal gig venue (“it’s pretty easy to imagine you’re on a beach in here”) preludes the wonderful ‘Forgiven/Forgotten’ before Olsen’s band exit the stage and leave her on her lonesome to end the set.
After some banter about tattooed guys in Seattle eating tacos to Sheryl Crow she finishes the set with three solo tracks, including ‘Lights Out’ and ‘May As Well’, which at points feels it’s going on too long, but for the most you’re just lost in the moment with the rest of the room as you could hear a pin drop as Olsen leaves Glasgow mystified.
Words: Iain Dawson
Photos: Gordon Ballantyne
