Mary Leay, ably assisted by Mike McEvoy on bass, serenaded the watching audience with her soft and beautiful style. Light touches and a noble voice float gently above the attendant rhythmic basslines like some fantastic collaboration between Nick Drake and Madeleine Peyroux, which offers (because of the current economic climate and all) a free eardrum massage from John Martyn, who, I might add, has incredibly nimble fingers for someone that's both overweight and dead.
Vandeville Falls, previously known as Silverfall, contain something of an eclectic mix of personnel and styles. The four representatives of the usual globally-sourced sextet - Jenny Bailey, Rick Hornby, Stef Manzo and Ulf Westergren - brought it all together brilliantly, though, with the sweet, soft songs and solid harmonies combining with tuneful professionalism, ebbing and flowing in a melodic tide of sound. Despite the ragtag dress-sense mixture of punk, 50's rocker, New Romantic and casual-classical, Vandeville Falls play as one talented, inventive pop rock unit, and are all the better for their varied influences.
Mark Bethune, the Canadian songmeister, filmmaker and all-round good egg, treated us all to a veritable feast of tunefulness. Mark's country-tinged acoustic blues rock songs are packed with foot-tapilicious riffs and memorable hooks, solid vocals and absorbing lyrics. Particularly brilliant are the songs "Let It All Out" and the epic "Take Me Anywhere".
The Skej (AKA Dom Scheggia) came back to PAS yet again, distilling his vast collection of songs into just six small packets and placing them in front of the audience with a beardy grin. Engaging tunes aplenty, as always.
A surprise appearance from the west London duo The eXwhY finished off the night awesomely. The acoustic version of the indie disco pairing is always a pleasure to hear, with soulful and energetic vocals dancing over funky nylon strings. "Beautiful" and "Feel It" sent everyone back to their homes with smiles on their faces and rhythm in their feet.
Dave Knight
The
Portobello Acoustic Sessions is held every Thursday night from 7:30 at The Metropolitan bar, Westbourne Park.
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Sixx A.M. - The Heroin Diaries
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The PAS Diaries: Mary Leay, Vendeville Falls, Mark Bethune and Dom Scheggia
