Despite the difficulty to shake the shadow of influence, The Dead Leaves are far from a hollowed-facsimile. They still deliver an equally genuine sense of vulnerable passion. Their tight playing is encouraged by the darker grooves of their music, offset by moments of ascending revelry. The richness of Gow’s voice imbues a believable sense of sincerity; Flanked by guitarist Andrew Pollock, and the rhythm section of Joel Wittenburg on drums and Cam Grindrod’s gentlemanly bass swagger, his voice centres the group’s sound.
Cover rides the brooding angles of its verse towards a cathartic finish, similar in construction to gloom merchants Interpol. The rich Changing follows with swelling slide guitar and the almost desperate refrain of “baby, don’t go changing on me.” The rhythm section’s punctuated harmonic changes are abetted by the bright chords of keys player Michael Kalenderian.
Later, Everybody’s Lost Someone is an older inclusion to their set; one that protrudes like a sore thumb in their otherwise stylistically consistent set. Their chosen single, If The Shoe Fits, is a closing highlight. Containing a zig-zag guitar pattern that seesaws across the thumping pulse and rising momentum of its chorus, punctuated by rousing brass and militant drums. It’s got the triumphant quality of, well… The National. Those constant reminders of their stylistic forebears are the ensemble’s double-edged strength and weakness. If they can shake the heavy presence of their influences, without losing their way with well-arranged, well-executed tunes – they’ll be set. Though they lack a truly original sound, they are not without impact or definition.
Loved: The Workers’ cosy bandroom
Hated: stage’banter’
Drank: More cider please
AL NEWSTEAD
