SUUNS | LIVE REVIEW

Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff, Sat 27 Sept

Sometimes as a music writer it can be difficult to, well, write about music. After all, it’s an abstraction; a collection of sounds that doesn’t necessarily want to be described. Words don’t map on to reality perfectly: there’s always a gap between what‘s said and what is, and the words that you write aren’t necessarily going to convey to the reader what the experience of actually hearing that music is like. And so you fall back on analogy: this band sound like x, y and z. So if I say that Suuns mix bluesy psychedelia with the insistent drumming and droning synths of Krautrock, are you going to be able to imagine what that sounds like? Are you going to agree with me? Do you even care?

I’m asking all this because writing about Suuns is proving to be very difficult for me. The most I can say about the performance is that the band played, I was there, and I enjoyed their music. But after that I’m at a bit of a loss as to what to say.

Their most recognisable moment comes with 2020, a stop-start descending slide guitar riff that sounds like a falling bomb illuminated by strobe lighting, played over a bowel-moving synth part while Ben Shemie mumbles his indistinct vocals. It’s a brilliant moment that rouses the half-filled room from its torpor and inspires plenty of arm waving.

After that, everything is a bit of a blur. The music they play is distinctive, in that they don’t sound exactly like anyone else, but the individual songs soon become a bit of a grind. There’s no nothing to dislike here, but there’s precious little that feels genuinely inspired either. Maybe the band are tired (touring is hard work); maybe the audience aren’t appreciative enough. Whatever the reasons, I leave the performance feeling that what I witnessed was nothing to write home about.

words DAVID GRIFFITHS