A cracking way to end.
Don’t you hate it when you get into a band only to realise that they have split up and you’d never get the chance to see them play live? That’s pretty rough on a music fan but possibly even harder to put up with is getting into a band, finally seeing them play live but be faced with the news that the band may be splitting up for good or may just be having an infinite hiatus, leaving the new fan in limbo.
This is the scenario around Monkey Swallows The Universe and their gig at Cabaret Voltaire in Edinburgh, for now, will be the last time the band will have played together. It wasn’t the busiest that Cabaret Voltaire has ever been in its life but there was a level of excitement in the air that was palpable.
‘The Casket Letters’ was one of 2007s sleeper hits and the set took some of the best moments from the album and gave them a final airing. Nat Johnson’s vocals have a delicate and beautiful way in their delivery and her range shines through on tracks like ‘Science’
Looking around the venue you could see some people feeling way sadder than they would have done if it had been a normal run of the mill gig and although Monkey Swallows The Universe may not have been a household name, like most great small bands, they had a hardcore following and there's definitely going to be a set of people missing them and looking out hopefully for new projects.
With soaring pop moments like ‘Matterhoney’ or more restrained and folky numbers such as ‘Bloodline’, MSTU will leave behind a fine body of work that hopefully will be uncovered by many for years to come.
Apologies for the almost morose reading of the evening whereas it should have been hailed as a celebration for an act who performed manfully and joyously and have left a fine body of work behind them