Review: Erratic Batting in Bristol

Along with the usual Main Room and Room 2, the performance space in the central bar area – a cosy, living-room-like setting with rugs and leather sofas – was put to use, and Crofter’s was more packed than I’ve ever seen it.

O.G. Jigg 

Under the O. G. Jigg moniker, Will Yates creates a complex, playful spread of looped electronic and acoustic sounds, densely layered and pushing the odd outlines of melody. A frisson of dark folk is always there at the edges, even in the more overtly uplifting numbers, leaking through the cavernous soundscape of drones and organ tones, the restless percussion and guitar patterns, the ribbon of clarinet, the scrunching bells. Behind two wooden tables laden with gear, O. G. Jigg spun these elements into an immersive wave that pooled into the corners of Room 2, clustered listeners swaying, attentive. I’d come to the event already a fan of O. G. Jigg and Yates’ parallel project memotone, so it’s fair to say I was prepared for a transportive half-hour. I was truly elsewhere, and I left with the sweet shivers of the other realm.

MP3 Chainsaw

Hit with just the kind of pace-change you get wandering from stage to stage at a festival, without the breather of the changeover, we managed (just) to squeeze into the Main Room for MP3 Chainsaw. Their forcefield of rowdy fun was practically visible, sparking and flickering above the audience’s heads. The crowd was so tightly rammed that it was a job to get far enough inside not to be hit by the door opening and closing, and the spirited rocking out of the fans at the front could just be glimpsed between the bodies. The intensity ratcheted steadily throughout MP3 Chainsaw’s set, building to a final song in which the vocalist poured heart and soul (and lungs) into a screaming tornado of blistering energy. Describing themselves as “maximalist pop forged from elements of shoegaze/funk/‘80s synth/noise/hardcore/riot grrrrrl/goth,” MP3 Chainsaw fused the heavy and the light-hearted into something wild. Get pit-ready.

MP3 Chainsaw play Bristol’s Simple Things festival on February 24 and Outer Town on April 13. 

Thirty Circles

In another musical one-eighty, we stepped back into the bar to be submerged in the sinuous tones of Thirty Circles, Dave Colbourn’s solo project for sax, bass clarinet, wind synthesiser, and pedals. Even in the more dispersed space of the bar area, it wasn’t hard to be drawn into the evocative worlds conjured by these tracks. With longform creations including Incantation and Nebula, Colbourn paired the music itself with a magical current of storytelling, adding an imaginative, experiential thread to his performance. 

Thirty Circles plays Improv’s Greatest Hits at Crofter’s Rights on January 31. Free entry, details here.

Pink Shabab

Filling the modest confines of Room 2 with funky synth-pop, Pink Shabab was like a ticket right out of Bristol’s January chill. With heart-shaped sunglasses setting the mood, the London artist otherwise known as Joe Carvell made light work of looping bass guitar, keys, kicks, and vocals into distinctive glossy cuts. The vibe felt fully realised, nicely crafted, breezing in like Japanese ambient jazz of the 1980s. You could almost hear the palm trees swaying, almost feel the warm concrete of the poolside.

Ex Agent

Like at most festivals, I did that thing where I get into a really good conversation and miss one of the bands I’m most eager to see. Emerging from a discussion in the bar, I made it into the Main Room for Ex Agent’s set, my heart sinking as I realised they were wrapping up their last song. Having seen the Bristol five-piece play before, I knew what I was missing – and the rippling, complex rhythms and electrified controlled-chaos feel of what I did catch only confirmed this. I can only be grateful that Ex Agent’s gorgeously unhinged debut single Clutch/5 is now out in the world.

Ex Agent play The Shacklewell Arms in London on January 25 – tickets here.

Rosa Brook

Rosa Brook’s vocals, looped beats, and chopped violin brought a vibrant twist to the bar space, which steadily filled as people poured out of the Main Room. Brook, one third of London post-punk trio Pozi, was joined on stage by another vocalist, and the pair sent their spiralled harmonies up and out as Brook carved strange shapes and shimmering flows on the violin – intricate but un-frilly, delivered with brio and warmth.

With a steady traffic of musicians striding back and forth laden with gear, the event seemed to gather its breath, ready to reform for the next phase. And although we admitted defeat at this point and stepped out for the brisk and chilly walk home – not without soaking up the buzz of the Crofter’s on a Saturday night, crowded with music heads, casual revellers, and friends – the FOMO of missing the DJs was real. What a feeling, though: to have so much great music collected together for a genuinely fun, fresh, surprising event, well-loved names alongside new discoveries, and the intersections, discussions, and serendipitous meetings that result. No bad thing to absorb all you can and leave on a high.

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The next Erratic Batting event will be Yin Yin at Strange Brew on February 17 – tickets here.

Photography courtesy of: 

Pink Shabab, MP3 Chainsaw and Fran Pope