Slowlight Quartet @ The Star Inn, Westgate Rd., Newcastle. May 22.

Tom Quilliam (ten/sop); Paul Lorraine (keys); Ian Paterson (bs); Jonathon Marriott (dms).

(Review by Lance/Photo by James Sebright Photography).

The opener was neither slow nor light as Quilliam set the room on fire with an aggressive almost punk-like nonstop tenor blast that started on the intro and ended on the coda. No prisoners were taken.

A switch to soprano for a more mellifluous approach - at least for a while - before building  up for the kill until Lorraine brought it back from the brink and cooled it.

I can't put names to the pieces as they were, I guess, all originals and there were no announcements but it doesn't matter. One thing is sure, they weren't describing waterfalls or sunsets.

This was contemporary and yet accessible. Almost a one man show with few bass solos or drum solos and only an occasional chorus from keyboards. This was, in truth, four guys working together and it worked!

They even committed the heretic act of not finishing each number with that meaningless exercise known as "fours"!

The second set began with an explosive cadenza from Quilliam that summoned the rest of the band back on stage for another mix of shell-blasting and paintstipping albeit with the occasional reverie slipped in amongst the shot and shell.

The music may be verging on free but the heads are arranged effectively before releasing the musicians off into the wild.

An excellent session - catch this band when you can. 
Lance.