drugstore: live at the ICA

The adventures of Isabel Monteiro since the apparent demise of cult outsiders Drugstore have been documented in her own inimitable style via her blog and Twitter account. According to these sources, the search for new Drugstore cowboys has been a long and entertaining one, but would they be rehearsed and ready for the first gig of the new era?

Drugstore are a band that always made more sense live than they ever did on record. They were a rare find, a band that wore their influences blatantly and yet managed to sound like nothing but themselves, and that indefinable strength remains in this new incarnation. Monteiro makes you feel what she is feeling; her songs are felt as much as heard and the performance is experienced viscerally. She might be tough, ironic and smart-mouthed between songs, but when she sings she is soulful and direct in a way that few ‘indie’ vocalists can manage. For the duration of the show you are under her spell, where decisions are made with the heart and not the head.

Old favourite ‘Superglider’ has an emotional clarity and now makes sense like never before. As with the rest of the older material it benefits from being worked over by the new musicians, who complement Monteiro’s strong on-stage character and serve her vision. With more shows they will add their own distinct ingredients to the Drugstore mix, but for now they deliver a more country-orientated sound. The most noticeable difference from the Drugstore of old is the sonic void left by cellist Ian Burdge, who has since found work on the A-list circuit with his string group Millennia Strings.

An encore of ‘Communication Breakdown’, dedicated to absent founder members Mike Chylinski and Daron Robinson, was both a full stop to the old line-up and an introduction to the potential of the new cowboys. Guitarist Tito in particular made his mark on backing vocals and, at one point, rescuing Monteiro from a rogue microphone stand. Later, the ICA bar is full of overwhelmed people clutching Drugstore T-shirts. This aftershow is for everyone; not just for Monteiro but her loyal and well travelled fans who have been willing her on and who are looking forward to what the future holds for a very special band.

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Photos by Lex Gatineau.

Written by: Lucy Brouwer

Tags: drugstore, live at the ICA

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 18th, 2010 at 12:00 am and is filed under live reviews, reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.