The Laurels use their shoe gaze style and long guitar solos to create a psychedelic atmosphere and it’s easy to get lost in. They win over a gradually filling Oxford Art Factory with their dreamy vocals and clear enthusiasm.
It’s hard to stay focused with their dreamy sound making your mind drift and lose concentration through their set. They achieve a well-blended sound by making each song move slowly into the next so there are no chances to be brought back to earth in a silent moment. The Laurels are obviously comfortable with their sound and with each other on stage and I look forward to seeing them play again.
Underground Lovers walk out and are greeted by an almost full Oxford Art Factory, a crowd made up of old and new fans delighted to see them. Though not everyone is excited – the girl asleep on the lounge next to me might have gone too hard too early to be able to enjoy their show properly.
The sound at Oxford Art Factory can’t be faulted at any stage of the night; they achieved a perfect mix for every instrument on stage and that results in an engaged and happy crowd.
The visual effects they used throughout the show, a video flickering between a girl’s face and a snow scene, fits their slow building tracks well. They rely on that slow build with each song but often don’t get to a climax. It’s the last few songs of the set that stand out and have the crowd dancing pushing to move closer to the stage. Despite being able to hear people’s conversations over two of the songs in their encore, Underground Lovers played a fun and smooth set, showing us they’re still great performers and a band worth going to see live.
Justine McNamara 