Returning to Bristol just a few months after supporting Half Moon Run in the city, US singer-songwriter Margaret Glaspy has sold out most of the dates on this tour, and a hot, dark, and packed Dareshack hosts the final might of this UK tour.
Following the electronic layers of support act Sarah Walk – worth checking out if you like ambient atmospheres – Glaspy is all voice and guitar. She enters the stage with zero fanfare, The Pixies continuing to play over the sound system, and is relatively low-key all night. Letting her guitar and songs do most of the talking is a smart move though, with the industrial twang of her guitar offsetting the lightness of her voice, with both bringing balance to the heft of songs like ‘Hammer and the Nail‘, and ‘Memories’ from her most recent record, Echo the Diamond and the still barnstorming ‘Emotions and Math‘ from her 2016 debut.
It’s noticeable how limited her stage banter is, it’s three songs in before the customary “Hello Bristol” makes an appearance, and that becomes clear during a solo acoustic where the New Yorker doesn’t hold back with her view on artists that explain their songs to you; it’s her belief that a song belongs to the listener not the writer, and whatever meaning you want to attach to a song is a personal thing. There’s some truth in that, especially as she delivers the brand new song ‘I Am Both‘, a searing anthem-in-the-making.
The low energy Sunday night crowd doesn’t dissuade Glaspy from delivering a show that hews closely to her song on record, but delivered with a froth that’s new and aided by some extended solos where the trio appear lost in the riffs.
The band set-up is simple; bass, drums, and guitar/vocals, and that’s all that’s needed to bring Echo The Diamond to life in a dark room in Bristol. ‘Act Natural‘ a song by Margaret Glaspy, and also Glaspy’s approach to playing live.
