Swingball, Dove and Boweevil and Das Fenster

The weeks of carefully cultivated promo leading up to Das Fenster's appearance at Olives created a suitably sinister character for him to step into and primed the audience ready for his mysterious entrance.  Whilst he played up to some of the tongue-in-cheek hype, the rest of the masquerade was quite plausible and he could have lived up to it!  He kicked off with "Ich bin Das Fenster" which to the non-German speaking individuals amongst us, translates as "I am the Window".   What was he opening up a window into? (I hear you ask).   Well if you were there on the night you would have had a glimpse into his world; that whilst Das Fenster was occupying this new persona he had some serious messages to pass on, he is a serious songwriter and musician and should be taken, well, seriously... The strumming of his guitar was perfectly executed along to his rock'n'roll numbers which had a dark edge.  He also performed some "poppier" rock'n'roll, for instance the infectious "Time Bomb".  Das Fenster has announced that he has now given up his day job and is seeking a professional career in music - well if he keeps up the standard which he demonstrated at Olives, it should be a breeze for him.  I wish him the best of luck.

I've seen Dove and Boweevil a few times now and they have really developed.  Lauren Dove's voice has grown stronger and her confidence appears to have correspondingly increased as well.  Mark "Boweevil" Howes' skillful handling of his resonator guitar compliments Lauren's vocals.  Collectively they are an authentic Delta blues duo, with an abundance of raw energy.  They took a trip to New Orleans last year and this seems to have rubbed off on them and had a positive effect.  They performed some of their classic and well known sultry blues songs, "the Sky is Crying", "Listen Up" (which will have you doing just that) and "Lady Lavoux".  They also aired some new songs which were more subdued and soulful - a good contrast and they were able to effortlessly glide between these two different musical styles, changing the mood as they did so.  Well I'm convinced and you should be too if you get the chance to see them.

Swingball have formed from a collaboration of members of 3 well known local bands (in no particular order of preference), the Eastern Stray Notes, Roxy's Toolbox and the Vagaband, all great bands in their own right.   They played like they have been playing together for years - perfectly synchronised, flowing like a smooth river of chocolate, which neatly leads me into their first number "Chocolat", a very catchy little tune which would  be apt as a theme tune for a thriller/suspense serial.  What a collection of instruments - trumpet, clarinet, accordion, double bass, acoustic guitar, whistle, saxophone and drums - which gave the band the versatility to do jazz, Klezmer, Cossack and old 20's/30's style bossanova beat numbers - "Sweet Sue" and "I'm in the Mood for Love" being examples of the latter.  One minute I was a foot-tapping, hand-clapping automaton wanting to join in with the "Hoiyghs" of the Cossack tunes, the next I was swaying along and melting to the likes of "Petit Fleur".   There is no "sniffiness" about the band though, they have a sense of humour as "Red Eyes" testifies.  This band is incredibly entertaining and it is joy to watch them perform.  If they fail to stir you, you might want to get someone to take you down to the nearest emergency unit to check you over for signs of life.

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Author: Dorraine Bennett                           ©2011 Dors Productions