Vetiver at Cecil Sharp House

Vetiver  
Cecil Sharp House, 28 February 2009

The legendary Cecil Sharp House has to be one of the stranger venues I've been to in recent years. The headquarters of the English Folk Dance And Song Society, it's been host to some of the biggest names in folk particularly in the 60s, but the venue itself, supposedly a ballroom, with its wooden step-style seats on each wall and a tiny, almost floor-level, make-shift stage covering some of these seats, it appears more like a school hall, or gym although it would barely fit a small school assembly.

Vetiver, the occasional band of trendy, Natalie Portman-dating, folkster Devendra Banhart, and probably less famously, the sometime backing band of The Jayhawks' Gary Louris, obviously attract a hipper fan in general than me: the floor is filled with lounging hipsters wearing feather headbands and trendy, Camden market clothes. Some appear to even think they are at Glastonbury or some kind of hipster festival, sitting in circles eating cake and drinking beer with their coats and bags in the middle making up some kind of pretend camp fire to sit around. Unfortunately for them when Vetiver hit the stage the hordes are asked to stand, since lying around with your legs spread out, balancing on your elbows takes up more room than standing and not everyone can fit into the room (oh you laid back, hippy hipsters you!).

The music itself is pretty laid back too but certainly more lovely for it, with the (mostly) bearded and hat-friendly San Francisco band swaying gently through such sunshiney numbers as Everyday and Rolling Sea from their new LP Tight Knit. Things get even better though when they become more rocking, jamming away on numbers like Won't Be Me and You May Be Blue. Unfortunately though some of the hipster crowd are too cool for the music with a few around me talking loudly through the first few songs (before they are shhhed and eventually asked to move to the back, thank god). Things appear to perk up for a while until an apologetic guy wanting to record some songs on his digital camcorder pushes his way to the front courtesy of his rather drunk and annoying girlfriend and ruins the sweetly acoustic songs by shoving the camera in front of peoples faces and talking loudly. Bad enough behaviour at a loud rock show, let alone a relatively quiet folk gig.

The band were definitely a breezy, warm treat but the audience proved less engaging. Hopefully I'll get to see them at a better venue and in a friendlier atmosphere next time.

Here's the band performing Rolling Sea to a more respectful audience at the SXSW festival a few weeks later: