Reviews

Today though, it’s a celebration of all his musical musings, by a section of bands at the revamped Ruby Lounge. Each band has a 15-minute slot, with a minimum requirement to play one of Serge’s numbers. It’s not quite a Live Aid affair, but it’s fun and entertaining.

SR Gents (c) Ged Camera

Some bands opt to take the complete plunge and deliver at least part of their set in French. SR Gents are dressed up in sharp hats and suits, copied from prohibition America, but they’ve obviously swotted up on their O level French.

Aptly for Remberance Day, they use a bugle to gently introduce the opening number and deliver the lyrics with a Parisian swagger allied to Piaf type arrogance. The illusion is only shattered at the end when, in a broad northern accent, they announce they are playing at Trof on Monday.

As the bands pass each other, the question “Now, what is a gas bottle doing on the stage?” needs to be asked. Has everyone started to go green and electricity is being saved? Denis Jones is responsible for this item being present, and two numbers into the set the reason becomes apparent.

Murmurs Of Tension (c) Ged Camera

Prior to that though, there’s a bit of a snag. One of the impacts of this smoking ban is that it can occasionally lead to your lead guitarist being outside the building when the rest of the band is ready and waiting onstage.

Once that is rectified, Denis and his troupe began the experiment of sampling, looping and feeding back noises and sounds. The gas bottle is actually full of helium and in a 'let me introduce my assistant' moment, Denis signals for a female accomplice to step forward and breathe in the gas. The resultant giggles and mouse squeaks are added to the aural soup.

Throughout the day, black and white reels of Gainsborough’s pictorial works play out on what appears to be an oversized handkerchief, possibly slightly used, keep the atmosphere going, and a succession of French records are played out.

Babyslave (c) Ged Camera

Charlie Blake is a lecturer at a Liverpool university, and Suzy is one of his pupils. Together they form two thirds of Babyslave. They play out the roles of the rapacious old man versus the seductress so effectively that Suzy announces that she knows how Jane Birkin felt. The steady undercurrent of electro beats eases the dominatrix vocal as titles such as 'Never Trust the Snake Sellers Wife' keep the crowd entertained

Swirling organs sounds introduce the St. Helens-based Murmurs Of Tension, and provide yet another musical variant of old songs, keeping them fresh. Similarly, the one-man unit that is Magic Arm supplies his own style. Playing, sampling, adding, deleting, the knobs are twiddled with sometimes surprising results, so any abrupt stops are interpreted as endings. It keeps the feeling indisputably live.

Caro Snatch & Shirokuma (c) Ged Camera

For one night only, Caro Snatch and Shirokuma have joined forces. The result is a deliciously hammed up performance, typified at the end as Shirokuma goes down on bended knee, entranced by Cara’s seductive vocals, even if they are about broccoli (oh yes!). As he grabs her trailing leg, with a big smile on her face, she growls "Gerrooff" and shrugs him away.

All in, it's a lively and enjoyable celebration of a musical maverick and there's nothing we like more than that round here. Vive la Gainsbourg!