KARMAMOI
VENUE BoSTon MuSic rooM, london DATE 02/12/2018 SUPPORT MidniGHT Sun
Aheady week of prog has seen the likes of the Hawklords and the double treat of Southern Empire and Damanek filling this venue just days apart… so perhaps there’s just a little ‘prog gig fatigue’ setting in on this damp Sunday evening, since neither artists nor promoter can be too happy with the frankly pitiful audience numbers.
Gloucestershire-based Midnight Sun’s set showcases their debut album, Dark Tide Rising, that’s due out in early 2019. Navigating a path between melodic rock, metal and neo-prog, the band are tight and punchy during opener, and early highlight of the set, Scheherazade, with drummer Sam Slater especially impressing on his last appearance with the band. The material allows both guitarists to shine – Andy Gelband adds vibrancy and heft to tracks like Scheherazade and Delirium, while Ben Swanwick manages some frighteningly nifty fretboard wrangling during closer Take Control. Possibly the most effective and affecting song in the set is Clouds, with vocalist Huw Lloyd-Jones channelling the agony of losing a child with dramatic flair as the song builds.
While perhaps lacking something distinctive that marks them out in a crowded market, tonight’s show does suggest their recorded debut will be worth checking out.
London-based Italians Karmamoi have managed a bit of line-up disruption over the last couple of years, with vocalists coming and going, as well as losing their keyboard player, leaving drummer Daniele Giovannoni as the only original member. Tonight, playing much of their new album The Day Is Done, the band inhabit musical territory instantly familiar to fans of their recorded work, building intriguing soundscapes that veer from ambient introspection, as with large swathes of Take Me Home, to dirty guitar riffathons like If. There are also jazz influences and songs like the new album title track, which can’t be considered anything other than blues prog. Often sparse, dark passages will morph into odd-time workouts and beautiful Gilmouresque soloing from the ever tasteful and considered Alex Massari as evidenced on Atma. Keeping up with the stylistic gear changes, vocalist Sara Rinaldi does a sterling job, capturing both the emotive vibe of songs like Martes and belting out the strident pop rock feel of songs such as Your Name.
While this varied confection of feels and styles is clearly something that the band deliberately court, sometimes the shifts in pace and mood are rather abrupt and there are points in the set, particularly towards the end of the show, where this combines with a couple of extended pauses between songs, making things start to feel a little disjointed. Such quibbles aside, Karmamoi turn in a terrific, majestic performance tonight; it’s just a shame that more people aren’t here to see it.