MATTIEL
Strange Brew, Bristol - 8th December 2024
Support: Cosmic Crooner
Mattiel Brown has made a consistently strong set of LPs which showcase her songwriting and unique voice. I've enjoyed her recorded output, but never seen her live. So I jumped at the chance of seeing her at our favourite Bristol venue.
First up, though, was Cosmic Crooner, a Dutch guy with a guitar and backing tape that he quite literally croons along to! To be fair, most of his music he composed and wrote himself, and he certainly looked the part, decked out in a retro-looking suit to fit in with his 60s lounge style. But he didn't do an awful lot for me or MrsRobster, not quite sure whether we got the joke, or even if there was a joke to be got...
Mattiel's set up was unusual in that she didn't have a drummer, so depite being backed by a three-piece band, it felt like we were getting something of a stripped-back sound, which I initially thought would be a bit of a let down. Instead, while some of the songs sounded quite different to those on record, she played a great show, full of things we wanted to hear. Her voice was in fine shape and deserved the extra space the setup afforded her.
The set was heavy on songs from her most recent album 'Georgian Gothic' with Jeff Goldblum and Lighthouse getting the best receptions. Of the older stuff, Keep The Change and early classic Count Your Blessings particularly stood out, but in fairness there were no real weak spots.
Next time Mattiel is somewhere near this neck of the woods, it would be nice to see her with a full band, but this show felt rather special so stripped-back or not, it lived up to my high expectations.
There's absolutely no footage online for this tour, as far as I can see. Not a lot of quality live footage of Mattiel at all, if I'm being honest. So here's an OK clip of Jeff Goldblum from the 2022 tour:
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