An Lanntair, Stornoway, Isle of Lewis, 14 May 2011

THE guy who never buys CDs at gigs seems to have bought four by Eduardo Niebla. I bought two on Saturday last and was reminded of two others bought when I last heard the same artist visiting an Lanntair.

Niebla has a well established touring circuit based on delivering consistent quality in performance, whatever the scale of the venue.

This leads us to the question of development. Is this something you must see in any artist, poet or painter or musician? Or is it sufficient to engage with subtle variations and explorations within narrow confines?

Eduardo Niebla (photo Gary Longbottom)

In Scottish poetry, we could compare Edwin Morgan’s body of work with that of George Mackay Brown. Morgan’s reputation took longer to secure because you are dealing with a linguistic chameleon. The style of poetry can range from a formal visual arrangement of language, to science fiction, to the tight telling of a real meeting. Brown’s, in contrast, is a series of variations with recurring themes and motifs.

So does a musician like guitarist Eduardo Niebla need to shift genres to keep engaging with an audience he will meet on recurring tours? Or will people return to hear very similar material within a well-defined working pattern?

Firstly, there is interest in the company he keeps. He is joined on this tour by some of the guest artists who contributed to this most recent album. We found two guitarists, not one, in the Stornoway arts centre.

It’s not as simple as lead and rhythm guitar. At times it would be like that, rock band style, but then there would be additional complexity and interplay when the sets of strings related to each other in abstract banter. The second guitarist (Carl Herring) contributed far more than backing.

Then there is the tone. It was very appropriately set by Mike Adkins, the an Lanntair technician and sound engineer, as “seventies nightclub”. He said that Niebla’s self-contained touring show needed little support so he made an effort with the staging. This hovered between the jokey and the classy side of naff, but really sent out the message that we were here for entertainment.  We didn’t quite get the palm tree, but the foliage was colourful. A nice touch.

But of course, the vastly experienced entertainer has built a repertoire which alternates moods. There would be virtuoso rhythmic playing then delicate gentle pieces then Latin dances. There was an electronic ping which re-occurred. At first I thought this was accidental and then I heard it as a bit like the creative use of feedback in the rock and roll heydays.

Niebla hovers close to easy listening from time to time but that’s really a break so you can concentrate on the more raw passion in the unadulterated flamenco.

For me the more raw playing is still the most powerful strand, and the percussive nature of that, where the tapping is as important as the melody, is vital. But most of the compositions blend jazz rhythm and Latin, and there is a recurring  modernistic film-theme feel which comes and goes throughout the evening.

So this was a night off and a night out but with moments where you were drawn into something quite strange and deep. I can buy the idea of the echo and ping as an integral part of the sound, like the drones or sympathetic strings in some traditional instruments. But for my taste, the more plain sound of the two guitars was just so powerful and complex in its own right that the extras were a bit of a garnish.

That impression was confirmed, listening to the music again at home. I would go for the 1996 I Can Fly Now before the 2010 My Gypsy Waltz.  But in all the concerts and all the albums I’ve heard, there have been moments when you have been drawn deep down into something deeply emotional under the entertainment.

And yes, I would go again next visit, if I’m spared and able. But I also have the feeling that a performer of this strength need not cater for too many shades of taste. I would trust the sound of two guitars, with the minimum of amplified assistance, a longer way.

© Ian Stephen, 2011

Links

• Eduardo Niebla
• Ian Stephen