Gig 19: The Staves / The Tabernacle / 01.05.12

Last time I saw the Staves, they were playing at Union Chapel (TimeOut’s venue of the year) and left everyone in the audience open-jawed – bringing the house down with only two tracks.

It was therefore with a mixture of excitement and worry that I entered the (beautiful) Tabernacle. Excited because I wanted them to be as good as the first time I’d seen them. And worried incase they weren’t.

This time they had a (very tight) rhythm section with them and when they all took to the stage and hit the first note of the set – I realised it was going to be different to the first time I’d seen them. Luckily for me, they were better.

Headlining the gig had obviously done wonders for their confidence and coupled with playing on home soil, they really went for it.

Soaring three part harmonies, reminiscent of Dixie Chicks, set to well constructed folk pop made a soothing elixir – and a very marketable one at that. It’s little wonder they’ve just signed to Warner and have Ethan AND Glyn Johns lined up to produce their album.

The set was short and sweet – each song punctuated by witty banter. The full band line up does an awful lot for their sound – it’s clear they’re rehearsed, having just got back from a VW campervan tour across the states with record label Communion. I can’t help but think the next time I see them, it will be in a room three times the size. And maybe, just maybe – the band will be bigger too. I can’t help but wonder what the addition of a string quartet would do for their sound. Even just a cello would bring it into Scott Matthew’s league.

Brilliant gig and brilliant band. They’re gonna be big – just wait!