Review by Jennie Macfie
Treacherous Orchestra
Ironworks, Inverness, 2 April 2010
DARKNESS fills the Ironworks. A ‘Space Invaders’ rumble begins to build, so deep it’s felt rather than heard. The crowd cheers, lights strobe, pipes wail out the opening notes of Kevin O’Neill’s triumphant ‘Superfly’ – we have liftoff! Wearing mask and makeup which in a typical cascade of cultural references nods to Alice Cooper, Kiss, Michael Jackson and Batman’s Joker, Treacherous Orchestra are in the building.
Treacherous Orchestra (photo - Louis de Carlos)
Here we have thirteen young male musicians from the Scottish tradition playing intricate arrangements influenced by a collective musical knowledge spanning the entire musical spectrum.. .it sounds like a recipe for disaster, but it works a treat, fuelled by great tunesmithing, intelligent arrangements, dedicated work at the sound desk, and a degree of male bonding not usually seen outside military bootcamp.
There are two primary musical clusters in the band – pupils of the late Gordon Duncan (Ross Ainslie, Ali Hutton, Bo Jingham), and members of the late Croft No 5 (Adam Sutherland, Innes Watson, Spad Reid, John Somerville). Secondary clusters involving Boxclub and Babelfish have all collided and fused to create something which is still evolving and never less than exciting.
The first half of the night doesn’t quite reach the heights of their Celtic Connections gig in January, perhaps because that involved a couple of thousand people packed into the Fruitmarket, while this is a couple of hundred folk in Inverness’s Ironworks. However after the interval Treacherous ratchet the energy up a few notches and throw everything they’ve got at the crowd. It’s a wall of sound; resistance is futile.
Whole sections of Sutherland’s ‘Shimmering Sea of Irkutsk’ could fit seamlessly into a Radio 3 broadcast alongside Philip Glass and Steve Reich. You can almost see sunlight sparkling on water as the flutes and fiddle modulate tightly around each note. A tight, explosive outbreak of percussion, a twisted inflection and in a trademark Treacherous moment the simple musical phrase mutates into something completely different.
Next, a classic Irish jig turns reggae at the edges and darts into a funky side alley. ‘How Many Cans of Stella’ is an unexpected foray into music hall singalong, MC’d confidently by Watson.
And so it goes, energy pouring off the stage, channelled through headbanging guitarist Mike Bryan. The tunes showcase in turn the skilled duos of flute, fiddle and pipes, accordionist and co-MC John Somerville, and Eamonn Coyne in his superhero guise of ‘Banjoman’.
In the shadows behind this eclectic array of frontmen, a solid foundation of rhythm is laid down by the mighty combination of Fraser Stone’s drums, Martin O’Neill’s bodhran, Barry ‘Spad’ Reid’s guitar and Duncan Lyall’s double bass. The finale is ‘Spree’, a tribute to Martyn Bennett, another late, lovingly lamented musician, the spiritual father of so many, including Treacherous Orchestra. Watson leads the crowd in wordless psalmody punctuated with ecstatic bouts of ‘going mental’. Hard to tell who’s having more fun, the audience or the musicians. Once again, Treacherous Orchestra have raised the bar; how high can they go?
Treacherous Orchestra play the Village Hall, Ullapool, on 9 April as part of their current Tune Up Tour.
© Jennie Macfie, 2010
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