By Christ, The Acid can play and weave a spell over the audience. There was something so magical and surreal about what was going on tonight, a feeling which was definitely compounded by the fact that they played in the dark.
Other than for Ry X, the band’s frontman, you couldn’t see their faces or make out what they were doing. Even Ry was visible only intermittently. It was eerie and beautiful. Being pitched in black sits with the band’s original anonymity (learning who’s in it is a recent development) and nothing distracts from the music, which you could feel in your chest.
In terms of sound, this owes as much to ‘90s shoe gaze as anything. It’s a meld of guitar fuzz, rumbling bass, some pretty lush, ambient electronica and Ry’s extraordinary voice. Sometimes he breathes and whispers the words (fragments which rarely make sense, but are still beautiful). At other times his voice soars over a surprising range – even then there’s a dream-like lethargy in his delivery.
The start was wildly atmospheric, night noises merged into feedback and they were back lit with stars, and that pretty much set the tone for the rest of the show. The whole performance drew from The Acid’s recent album, Liminal, and seemed way too short. They played for an hour, but we could have been lulled by them forever. Animal and Creeper, which was somehow even more sinister live, were clear crowd highlights.
This was an aural treat.
BY MEG CRAWFORD
Loved: Ry X’s voice.
Hated: Being in the dark has some downsides. People, just because we can’t see each other doesn’t mean we’re in Lord of the Flies.
Drank: Diet Coke.
