Brighton always has something of a vibe about it but, on this unseasonably warm weekend (which also happens to be part of fresher’s week and the Green Party conference), the city feels even more packed than usual, the stony beach rammed with folk looking to enjoy one last opportunity to worship the warm yellow god in the sky before Autumn lands on us with both feet.
We’re down, of course, to see Drink The Sea, who are playing the last show of a four-date UK run before heading off to Europe. For those who have somehow missed out, Drink The Sea is a musical project that brings together the combined talents of Lisette Garcia, Alain Johannes, Peter Buck, Barrett Martin, Duke Garwood and, joining the band on bass, Dune Butler. Collectively, these remarkable musicians have formed one of the most creatively satisfying bands of the last decade, establishing a sound that is uniquely theirs over the space of three albums released in just under a year.
Tonight, the band are playing Chalk, which first attracted our attention when the Melvins decimated it in July last year. With a capacity of around 900 people, Chalk is a fantastic independent venue, nestled just back from the seafront and close to the endearingly grungy East Street Tap. Characterised by friendly staff, good sound, and a decent bar, its black-clad walls and varied listings hark back to the 90s, before corporations like O2 started churning out identikit venues where the primary focus seems to be on extracting as much cash from bands and punters alike as possible.
I digress. Tonight, Chalk does feel a little undersold – probably because the previous night’s show was effectively just up the road in London – but, what the crowd lacks in size, they make up for with enthusiasm, cheering material both old and new with equal vigour, which is impressive when you consider the third album was only officially released yesterday. It is arguably a brave move for the band to focus on new material rather than, say, sprinkle in a greater number of heritage songs but, when you see the passion the band have invested in these songs, you realise it’s not only the right decision, but the only one if Drink The Sea is to continue forward as a creative entity.
At any event, part of the joy of Drink The Sea is that it is almost impossible to put a label on it. The various members’ former bands may give some clue and there are moments where you could point and say “it sounds like…” but, more often than not, the wonder is in the fact that Drink The Sea have deftly combined elements of Americana, jazz, indie, rock, psych, stoner, and even grunge into something that crosses boundaries seemingly at will.
And yet, for all the genre hopping, the band have a remarkably coherent sound that is just… them. Part of this, it could be argued, lies with the complementary vocal styles of Alain, Barrett, and Duke (with Dune also contributing on stage), and part of this in the understated production of Barrett and Alain; but largely it lies in a remarkable chemistry that sees the band operate on a basis of total understanding with one another. The result is a series of songs that feel as fresh and as exciting as if they were being spontaneously jammed out in front of you.
To my surprise, the band kick the night off with the opening trio of songs from their debut. The serpentine Shaking for Snakes sounds even more amazing than it did on the last tour, the massed guitars of Peter, Duke, and Alain writhing across the auditorium with considerable vigour. It’s followed by the unexpected disco-funk of Saturn Calling which, complete with its groovy bassline and wah-inflected guitar, helps to raise the temperature a good few notches. With Dune (who looks uncannily like Syd Barrett) getting his groove on, it’s fun to watch Peter Buck catch his eye before springing into action, occasionally bouncing along to the music as if unable to remain entirely stage bound. That energy remains on Outside Again, which sounds like a long-lost treasure from the Dust sessions, Duke Garwood casually staking out his claim to being one of the most compelling vocalists currently treading the boards. Like his friend, the late Mark Lanegan, he’s not only possessed of an expressive baritone that seems to drift within the fabric of the songs themselves, he’s also a hypnotic performer who completely inhabits the world the band have created.
Having set an incredible bar for the night, DTS lead us headlong into III with a monumental rendition of Deep As The Sun. Here, we not only find Peter Buck using an E-bow to make the very air in front of his amp ripple, but we’re also treated to the sight of Barrett holding two sticks in one hand, dexterously playing the high-hat and rim shots at the same time. A small detail, perhaps, but indicative of a band whose understated technical skill is always present but never showy.
Better still (at least for me) is the grungy pulse of Big Dirty. The new album’s lead track, it’s a gloriously gritty outpouring of overdriven guitar that lands somewhere between early QOTSA and Mad Season. Perhaps more surprising still is the garage-psyche of It Makes The Rain Slow which, amped up on stage, takes on elements of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, especially in the way its mid-tempo groove just seems to to infect your entire body.
Barely pausing for breath, the band run through Oh Desire, Sever, and Parisian Voodoo back-to-back. This bravura performance demonstrates two things absolutely. Firstly, that the band have that rare ability to transport the audience from the vast landscapes of some far-flung land to the claustrophobic back-streets of the French capital without missing a beat; and secondly, that these are songs that were made for the live environment. As good as the album is (and I have had no cause to reconsider the superlative-laden ten-on-ten review with which I furnished it), the sheer dynamic of the band’s live performance still manages to eclipse it utterly and, when Duke lets loose on the clarinet during the latter song, it’s a moment as sublime as you’ll find in any whiskey-soaked jazz bar. That it’s followed by a lovely I’ll Be Your Shelter, is the icing on the cake and it’s amazing how many of these new songs already feel like old friends.
Nevertheless, and perhaps mindful of the fact that the album dropped only yesterday, the band whip through a number of highlights from their debut set, including Sacred Tree, Bembe For Two, Pour Your Glow On, Meteors, and Embers. I don’t know if it’s my imagination, but these more familiar songs seem to have gained a harder edge as the band have become more comfortable with one another, with Embers in particular landing with unexpected force.
It’s back to the new material once more, with Turn To Gold, a particularly Homme-esque Heal and the full-on jazz of Becalmed all demonstrating that this is a band that can run the gamut from stoner rock to neo-psyche via blues and jazz, all the while making it seem the most natural thing in the world.
That stoner vibe is certainly in evidence as Barrett gets us to clap along to House Of Flowers, a track that has a loose Desert Session vibe, further enhanced by Dune’s shift to the double bass. It’s followed by a stripped-back The Strangest Season, which is pure Lanegan, and then there’s the earthy, Mad-Season-rock of The Rubble King, which paves the way for Long Gone Day itself.
Perhaps one of the night’s most emotional moments, there’s a raw beauty to seeing musicians whose personal and musical connections to Mark and Layne run so deep that it winds back time itself. For the briefest of moments, we share a communion for those two fallen artists, joined together in a melody that has meant so much to so many over the years. It’s a difficult thing to write, but it’s something that is truly special to experience and I can only really add that you know it when you feel it, as inadequate as the words that follow may be.
With the night really over, and you’d struggle to believe how quickly a two-hour set can pass, we get just two more songs from Drink The Sea’s extensive catalogue. The first of these is a massive Land of Spirits which, with its monstrous bass sound, comes over as Black Sabbath powered by Latin rhythms. This is followed by a particularly splenetic Between The Teeth, a hulking great track that summons the spirit of Monster-era R.E.M., Peter Buck throwing shapes and looking unbelievably cool as he tears riff after riff from his signature Rickenbacker.
It leaves two songs to wrap things up, both very familiar. The first is a glorious, fists-aloft rendition of R.E.M.’s own The One I Love, which is perfectly sung by Alain (with ample help from an eager audience). The second is an utterly jaw-dropping take on The Hanging Tree (The Desert Sessions, later re-recorded by QOTSA), which is delivered with phenomenal power by a band who, frankly, look like they could go on all night if the mood so took them.
One of the very best shows I witnessed last year was Drink The Sea at Camden’s Jazz Café and, as the first time you see a band is so often the best, I didn’t necessarily expect this evening to compete. The fact that it not only equalled the Camden show but surpassed it came as a stunning and welcome surprise and it’s a measure as to just how far the band’s confidence and chemistry has grown that this would be the case.
The whole experience of Drink The Sea this time around was just somehow bigger. From Barrett’s between-song chatter and Alain’s assured turns at the mic to Peter Buck losing himself in the moment and Duke’s soulful vocals, the band take their audience on a musical mystery tour that leads from the darkened Parisian streets to the vast open spaces of Brazil and everywhere in between. That the band manage to do this while airing almost entirely new material only adds to the sense of awe and, with the band already prepping new material, you can only wonder what’s coming next.
With any band whose members have a past, there’s a tendency and even a temptation to allow the legacy to become bigger than the endeavour. With Drink The Sea it’s impossible to imagine that happening. There’s too much of a creative spark between these fine musicians and you can feel their excitement from the very first note to the final moments on stage. Whether it’s Duke and Alain sharing a quiet joke or Peter Buck re-evaluating his relationship with gravity, the band share a remarkable creative spirit that is palpable and it’s simply a joy to spend an evening in their company.
