It felt remarkably like the mid-nineties on walking into the Duchess on November 5, as the support band for Spector, new ambient grunge rockers Splashh, entertained the crowd. Their sound was somehow particularly fitting in the venue’s surroundings, as it resonated through the rustic arches and created a brilliantly nonchalant vibe, the band members clearly aware of the strength of their songs. This band are certainly ones to look out for in the coming months, and their tour with Spector has inevitably opened up a few more opportunities to gain fans.
Spector were, of course, the main spectacle in the proceedings, and ever-jovial frontman Fred MacPherson took to the stage in his signature geeky yet endearing way, busting his lip on the microphone in the process. Unperturbed by this, MacPherson hyped the crowd up, musing: “I can’t believe we’ve got so many of you out on a Monday, York knows how to party.” Certainly, there was a considerable crowd and there was an immediate thrust of energy from the people in the front row when the first songs were played.
The quality of the songs, however, was not always particularly inspiring. After the sounds of the brilliant support, Spector’s songs fell flat somewhat, their indie-pop nature seemingly making them seem a little worn out. Although the crowd at the front adhered to the standard expectation of jumping, writhing bodies, and were clearly enjoying themselves, it was clearly difficult at times for the band to keep this going, as newer songs were played and interest began to dwindle. Particularly as the newer songs could not maintain an audience through their own merit alone.
The band played a decent set for a Monday night at Fibbers, and cannot be faulted for appealing to a certain young crowd who were for the most part highly entertained. However, the longevity of the band is questionable seeing as a lot of what makes their shows entertaining is in the nature of the band members’ personalities and not so much in the merit of the songs, which perhaps err too much on the side of bland with their attempts at indie pop.