 | | Adem (pic: Ben Page) |
It may seem that bedlam would ensue, but in reality, thanks in no small part to the sheer unquestionable talent of all involved, 0 Degrees of Separation was superb. That’s not to say that the players didn’t make an unusual collective. Scattered around the stage were Adem, grinning from behind his battered organ; Juana Molina, sternly smiling beside a bank of electronics; Vetiver, laid-back and louch as their music; Vashti Bunyan, beaming at every opportunity from the sheer pleasure of being involved; and their assorted cohorts, sporting violins, ukeleles, toy bells, double bass and a host of weird and wonderful instruments.  | | Vetiver (pic: Ben Page) |
“The one thing we decided to do,” smiled Adem, discussing the idea behind the tour, “was play together and not apart.” And for the most part, that’s exactly what they did, delivering a fresh and exciting way of performing into the process. Imagine it… there is no headliner, as everyone is as important as everyone else, and the 11 people on stage simply slipped fluidly in and out of each other’s songs.  | | Juana Molina (pic: Ben Page) |
Adem led the entire band through the highlights of his Love And Other Planets album, Juana used everyone and no-one to serve up her Spanish treats, and Vetiver washed in and out of their own and the others’ music with laidback country style. It was Vashti, though, that stole the show. Having waited so long for her success, she revels in performance, shyly whispering thank yous and sweet explanations of songs into the microphone, before unleashing a voice that seems to have been cut from mythology to be placed in her.  | | Vashti Bunyan (pic: Ben Page) |
Her duets with both Vetiver and Adem were stunning combinations of sound, her explanation that Diamond Day, contrary to what some people might think as a result of advertising, wasn’t about mobile phones, and her lead of the closing collective take on the Rolling Stones’ Some Things Just Stick In Your Mind were platinum streaks in a sea of sparkling gems. It may have seemed like an odd idea, but other performers should take note. Mixing together the four acts made for a show that lacked any sort of ego, offered different and intoxicating versions of each act’s music and showed that sometimes, even when the parts are amazing, the sum of them is much, much more. |
