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Van Coeur

Jun 26, 2024 By Nick Roseblade Photography by Nick Roseblade Web Exclusive

The Rossi Bar is slowly becoming one the best places in Brighton to see great new music. Whoever does the booking should be commended on an eclectic mix of nights. And on top of that they also sell Guinness 0%. Tonight’s music was a very exciting prospect indeed. The beat leaning poetry of Fidge Bibblyotek, the dance punk of Holy Clang, the intricate guitar loops of Expedient Self and the slow doom country of Van Coeur. What could be better?

Fidge Bibblyotek started off the night with his brand of poetry. It was slightly beat, slightly surreal, slightly political, slightly scathing attacks on society. It was the first time Bibblyotek had used a phone to read his poetry and there were a couple of teething problems, but nothing that removed the rapt audience from the words. One poem was about living in Brighton. The best line was ‘No one can drive you to Gatwick, as it costs more than wine’. His set ended with a poem about deconstructing the Greggs menu. Each item was given a slightly political meaning. It reminded me of author John Green’s The Anthropocene Reviewed podcast and the episode about the Taco Bell breakfast menu. But funnier. However, Bibblyotek claimed that a cheese and onion slice was good. Gah! It isn’t. Other than that, it was a strong start to the night.

After the shortest of breaks Holy Clang took to the stage. The first time I saw Holy Clang was at the 2016 Great Escape. They were called Guerraz and weren’t part of the main programme, or the alt-escape. They were, instead, busking down on the seafront. It was the most enjoyable thing I saw during that edition. After a few years, and as many EPs, they changed their sound and name to Holy Clang. Thomas Himsworth has switched guitar for bass, synth and vocals. Dave Osborne is still on drums, but it’s a conventional kit now instead of one that uses a bike. The set was propulsive. Osborne is one of the best drummers in the UK at the moment and his off kilter, almost free style, works incredibly well with Himsworth’s spacey synths, driving bass and shouty lyrics. The best part of all the songs is when they get locked in the groove and just play. This is where I hear Guerraz the most, but its heavier and dirtier than anything that band produced. New song “Robbing Fresh Fruit From the Co-Op” was the standout moment of the set. It was broody and apocalyptic. The next song “AIBU” was “Inspired by the Mum’s Net message board. Am I Being Unreasonable”. Drone synth, intricate bass and that devastating drumming. Then the set was over. Holy Clang are what ESG would have sounded like if they leaned more into punk and dance music and had a jazz drummer.

There aren’t many acts that can follow the fun and explosive nature of Holy Clang. Luckily one of them was next. Expedient Self. Intricate guitar work played through loop pedals. Part hypnotic. Part psychedelic. Part classical minimalism. It’s been six months since I last saw Expedient Self. What a difference six months can make. Last time the songs were rigid. Very similar to how they were recorded. Now they felt like living things. As well as looping the guitar, now vocals are being manipulated. At one point “Brick by Brick” was uttered with such venom I began to worry for Expedient Self’s mental wellbeing. As the set continued, we were being pulled into only focusing on the music. How much time had passed? 1 minute? 10 minutes? 1 hour? It was hard to gauge, as the music was all consuming. When the set did come to an end only 30-minutes had passed. The new songs, which consumed the majority of the set, were dense with melodies, emotion and captivating playing. The use of vocals felt weird at first, but as they were used sparingly and like punctuation, they really worked with the new material. Whether the songs are complete, or just work in progress sketches will remain to be seen. What was evident was how much of a leap Expedient Self’s music has experienced in a relatively short period of time. The next few months will be exciting for sure…

Van Coeur closed the set. To describe the band is either Low covering Earth or vice versa. Their brand of sad country infused slow jams seemed like an odd choice for the night, especially as a headliner. Everyone played at a fairly decent clip and here we were being slowed down. After a song, or two, it made sense. The music was intricate as everything that had come before but played slower. The power and intensity were there, but just different. Lyrically Van Coeur were in a similar vein. Instead of shouting slogans, as Holy Clang had, or looping existential dread, Van Coeur enunciated stories of existential dread. The song of their set, and possibly the night, was “AFT.” This slow burner built with intensity until the lyric “And stars collapse far from here in slow time”. After that the song built a bit of pace before a glorious run down to the outro.

Gigs like this remind you that when you think nothing is going on, something probably is. As I emerged from the cellar in The Rossi Bar I was confronted with the usual signs of Friday night in any city. Flashing blues and twos in the distance. Lads who had drunk too much but were unwilling to admit defeat and go home. Girls who wanted the promise of one last good song before turning in. Couples scurrying away before where they were kicked off. It was nice to know that for a few hours I was out of that mess and immersed in a warm cocoon of quality music.