Thursday 26th February 2009 @ Thekla, Bristol

If you were to attempt to define into existence the coolest band in the universe, you may end up somewhere near describing The Durutti Column. Signed to legendary record label Factory, they were named after a gang of Spanish Civil War anarchists, they had an unerring commitment to experiment with music and they once issued an LP with a sandpaper cover which gradually destroyed all the records around it (a reference to a situationist in-joke). Cool huh?

Formed in the late ‘70s, they occupy a space in the canon of the Manchester scene somewhere between the self reflective musings of bands like Joy Division and The Smiths and the swaggering ‘spirit of Muhammad Ali’ bullshit of Oasis and their musical spawn. In short they are a more interesting prospect which is why so many people made their way to the Thelka on a Thursday in February to watch the semantics come alive.

The show starts with front man Vini Reilly thanking people for coming to listen to his “dodgy” music and apologises for the “din”; although this comes later as the first two songs (Wild Beast Tamed and More Rainbows) are stripped down and sweet, played only on guitar and piano with his girlfriend, Poppy.

Only after introducing the rest of the band and some quite heinous name dropping from the bass player (Doves, Elbow…Diana Ross?!) are we treated to vintage Durutti Column; samples, distortion, ethno-beats, noise and even a hint of calypso all form to create a pleasing aural anarchy. Drummer Bruce Mitchell may look like your crazy uncle but he quickly becomes the star of the show after a number of quite spectacular drum solos – yes, I said drum solos. It is also clear that classically trained Reilly is an enormously skilled guitar player, striking a balance between melody and technique showing off what he can do without descending into the realms of Carlos Santana.

Experimental to the extreme, tonight’s show pushes the audience to the limit with the creation of a wall of noise that straddles the worlds of art and music. The sound is melodic and lovely whilst managing at times to be intense and uncomfortable. The Durutti Column are a truly unique band and a truly unique gig experience. They don’t make them like that any more.

www.thedurutticolumn.com

Hazel Goodfellow