BRAND X

Live From The Rites Of Spring Festival 2018 BRAnd X livE Close encounters of the musical kind.

Let’s be honest. There’s not really a lot to look at when it comes to Brand X. True, they might all well be handsome devils to a man but when it comes to their first-ever in-concert Blu-ray it’s quickly apparent their stage show is non-existent. I mean, where are the costume changes and the choreographed dance moves? What about some crowd surfing or maybe riding across the stage on a Segway? Nope, nada, nothing. All you get is five guys playing their instruments. That’s got to be dullsville, right? Wrong.

With a quality that’s nothing short of magnificent, watching this quintet animating a famously complex repertoire and breathing new life into it along the course of this hour-plus concert turns out to be absolutely riveting. With no extraneous, special FX or jerky jump-cuts what we get is a nicely presented multi-camera shoot. Edited together by Stephen W Tayler, whose work with this new incarnation of the band and their previous two live album releases has been so essential to their late-career renaissance, Tayler’s mixes in stereo and surround here prove just as vital. Elegantly conveying the muscular power Brand X can generate without bashing the viewer/listener over the head with it, essentially this package is like having Brand X playing in your living room. The band’s second album, Moroccan Roll, released in 1977, is the principal beneficiary, occupying four of the nine titles in a setlist that also touches upon tracks from Unorthodox Behaviour, Product and Do They Hurt?.

Understandably, founder members guitarist John Goodsall and bassist Percy Jones dominate the foreground, given the extent to which their signature sounds are so integral to Brand X’s sound. Now in their 60s and 70s respectively, they both shine and drive the music with an undiminished intensity and authority. However, this is no mere two-hander supported by capable but supporting personnel. The textural depth keyboardist Chris Clark brings is significant and his vivacious soloing sometimes possesses a wry perspective evidenced by his nod to Keith Emerson’s Trilogy in the middle of an eloquent piano interlude.

Percussionist Scott Weinberger and drummer Kenny Grohowski grasp not only the bigger picture but also the minutiae contained within, and it is frequently astounding. Nobody here is going through the motions or trotting out parts. The extent to which they listen to each other, and the degree to which this apparently simple act knit the music together so convincingly is partly what makes this so powerful. What’s that you say? Watching people listening to each other? You’d be surprised how exciting it really is.

LIKE HAVING BRAND X PLAYING IN YOUR LIVING ROOM.