BENEDICT BENJAMIN / TJ ROBERTS / ALICE ROBBINS | LIVE REVIEW
Ocean Arts, Cardiff Bay, Sat 4 May
An ample turnout greeted all three acts gracing the Ocean Arts space on Saturday night, the incongruous Cardiff Bay venue’s convivial charm belying its industrial warehouse setting. Nottingham-based Alice Robbins began proceedings with a series of electro-acoustic-centric numbers, her soulful voice conjuring a cosy ambience, coupling casual interpersonal rapport with breezy melodic exuberance. The intimate surroundings helped accentuate this sense of hazy revelry.
TJ Roberts continued with a laidback roll through his 2018 debut album, whose sun-dappled 70s-style California rock was particularly evident on the peppy effusion of Couch and Bad For The Weather. Introducing his wife on keys and backing vocals, the Welsh artist exhibited an effortlessness in deploying oscillating harmonies, propelling the powerpop of I Guess I Call Myself Your Man, The Party’s synth-inflected subtlety and a faithful rendition of Big Star’s Thirteen. Interspersed with humorous quips, Roberts’ set induced an escapist atmosphere within the room; relaxed, upbeat and pared-down in scope.
Benedict Benjamin, alias Ben Rubinstein, brought brooding balladry to the stage, in a performance spanning introspection and latent angst, delivering tracks from recent sophomore album Truant. His sonorous vocal range pierced through a mist of reverb-drenched strings, lending a rockabilly tinge to the Link Wray-esque Tell Me If You’re Lonely and emotional edge to the lulled pace of Baby’s Crying, the latter tacitly recalling the tender folk of Iron & Wine. Change Your Mind, the penultimate song of the evening, melded haunting synth with vigorous guitar hooks, while Rubinstein closed the set with a track by his old band Mariner’s Children – from an album which, he recalls, remaining copies were destroyed in the 2011 London riots.
The audience remained engaged, as evidenced in the rousing response. A trio of artists that brought warmth to a rather chilly, clear-skied evening.
words CHRIS HAMILTON-PEACH