{"id":82606,"date":"2024-03-20T23:04:27","date_gmt":"2024-03-20T23:04:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/avo-magazine.com\/?p=82606"},"modified":"2024-03-21T19:07:34","modified_gmt":"2024-03-21T19:07:34","slug":"live-report-paranoid-void-falling-laughing-at-the-sunflower-lounge-in-birmingham","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/avo-magazine.com\/en\/2024\/03\/live-report-paranoid-void-falling-laughing-at-the-sunflower-lounge-in-birmingham\/","title":{"rendered":"Live Report: Paranoid Void + Falling & Laughing at The Sunflower Lounge in Birmingham"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s my first time witnessing local duo Falling & Laughing, and I must admit that it is something of a revelation. With a sound that falls somewhere between the sublime song-smithery of indie rock legends The Wedding Present and the minimalism of post-rock of Shellac, Falling & Laughing\u2019s sound is a pleasing tension of opposites. Jangly guitars and lithe, vocals are tethered by pounding, hypnotic drums, while quiet sections are juxtaposed with loud, and the result is a sound that constantly repositions the listener. At the time of writing, it has been almost three years since the band\u2019s last EP, and five since their last gig in Birmingham, yet there\u2019s no sense of dislocation, and the band lock in tightly like a set of interconnected cogs. Apparently, it is the live debut for all the songs performed tonight, and they signpost a bright future, particularly opening track (titled 1959<\/em>, I believe) that rocks with a distinctly Orange Juice\/Josef K feeling. With the good vibes radiating from the stage, Falling & Laughing are an affable pair, and they\u2019ve won many hearts and minds tonight.<\/p>\n

\n \n <\/a>\n \n <\/a>\n \n <\/a>\n \n <\/a>\n \n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Following their debut UK tour and a triumphant set at the premier post-rock festival ArcTanGent in 2022, Paranoid Void are back to build upon past successes, and a crowd packed tightly inside The Sunflower Lounge eagerly await their appearance. There\u2019s a tangible buzz electrifying the air, that increases the expectation to an almost unbearable level, but the spell is broken when the band materialise with little fanfare and proceeds to dazzle the audience with their musical dexterity over the course of 60 shapeshifting minutes. The band\u2019s latest album (Travels In My Universe<\/em>) is an ethereal, otherworldly affair and Paranoid Void manage to recreate that aesthetic tonight. With their unusual poly-rhythms, this trio seem to alter the very fabric of time, and there\u2019s an almost jazz sensibility to their sound that recalls Miles Davis\u2019 Bitches Brew<\/em> or Eric Dolphy\u2019s Out To Lunch!<\/em>, only filtered through a Japanese perspective. There\u2019s a kind of controlled chaos to the band\u2019s sound, as if teetering on a precipice, and it is to their credit that they keep it balanced in such a position throughout the whole gig.<\/p>\n

\n \n <\/a>\n \n <\/a>\n \n <\/a>\n \n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n

With a crystalline sound that hangs like icicles glistening in the winter sun, the band deliver a set that touches all points along their career, but it\u2019s tracks from the aforementioned Travels In My Universe<\/em> that shine brightest. MEGURI has a razor-sharp guitar tone that slices the air, whilst bassist YU-KI is the elephant in the room and attacks her bass like a lead guitarist with some fine finger-tapping and nifty solos. However, it\u2019s drummer MIPOW who drives the band forward, deftly mixing up rhythms and keeping time in metronomic fashion. But Paranoid Void work best in tandem and the chemistry they share verges on telepathy. Like a drop of rain falling in water then rippling in concentric circles, travel #dream<\/em> is an expansive number that fills the entire venue and goes down particularly well, as does its companion piece travel #afterward<\/em>. There\u2019s no flashy props or gimmicks with Paranoid Void, just three women playing some of the finest math-rock. This stripped back aesthetic has the benefit of bringing the songs to the fore, and when the songs are this good, that\u2019s exactly where they should be.<\/p>\n

\n \n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Live Report: Paranoid Void + Falling & Laughing
\nThe Sunflower Lounge, Birmingham, 22.05.2023
\nPhotography: James Grant<\/a> (Twitter<\/a>\/Instagram<\/a>)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s my first time witnessing local duo Falling & Laughing, and I must admit that it is something of a revelation. With a sound that falls somewhere between the sublime song-smithery of indie rock legends The Wedding Present and the minimalism of post-rock of Shellac, Falling & Laughing\u2019s sound is a pleasing tension of opposites. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":67,"featured_media":85643,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":{"source_name":"","source_url":"","via_name":"","via_url":"","override_template":"0","override":[{"template":"2","single_blog_custom":"","parallax":"1","fullscreen":"1","layout":"right-sidebar","sidebar":"default-sidebar","second_sidebar":"default-sidebar","sticky_sidebar":"1","share_position":"top","share_float_style":"share-monocrhome","show_share_counter":"0","show_view_counter":"0","show_featured":"1","show_post_meta":"1","show_post_author":"1","show_post_author_image":"1","show_post_date":"1","post_date_format":"default","post_date_format_custom":"Y\/m\/d","show_post_category":"1","show_post_reading_time":"1","post_reading_time_wpm":"300","show_zoom_button":"1","zoom_button_out_step":"2","zoom_button_in_step":"3","show_post_tag":"1","show_prev_next_post":"1","show_popup_post":"1","number_popup_post":"1","show_author_box":"1","show_post_related":"1","show_inline_post_related":"0"}],"override_image_size":"0","image_override":[{"single_post_thumbnail_size":"no-crop","single_post_gallery_size":"crop-715"}],"trending_post":"0","trending_post_position":"meta","trending_post_label":"Trending","sponsored_post":"0","sponsored_post_label":"Sponsored by","sponsored_post_name":"","sponsored_post_url":"","sponsored_post_logo_enable":"0","sponsored_post_logo":"","sponsored_post_desc":"","disable_ad":"0"},"jnews_primary_category":{"id":"3088","hide":""},"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":{"override_view_counter":"0","view_counter_number":"0","override_share_counter":"0","share_counter_number":"0","override_like_counter":"0","like_counter_number":"0","override_dislike_counter":"0","dislike_counter_number":"0"},"footnotes":""},"categories":[3088],"tags":[7796],"class_list":["post-82606","post","type-post","status-publish","format-gallery","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-jpn-music-events","tag-paranoid-void","post_format-post-format-gallery"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/avo-magazine.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82606","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/avo-magazine.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/avo-magazine.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/avo-magazine.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/67"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/avo-magazine.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=82606"}],"version-history":[{"count":36,"href":"https:\/\/avo-magazine.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82606\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":85730,"href":"https:\/\/avo-magazine.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82606\/revisions\/85730"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/avo-magazine.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/85643"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/avo-magazine.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=82606"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/avo-magazine.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=82606"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/avo-magazine.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=82606"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}