Papercuts, The Legion, London

Rarely does a musical artist grow stronger from one album to the next, without anyone sussing them out and knocking them back down. San Fransisco’s Papercuts, or Jason Quever, is one of these categorical artists. Having already released two critically acclaimed albums in 2004 (‘Mockingbird’) and in 2007 (‘Can’t Go Back’), it is truly astounding to see that, wherever you go, whatever you read, this year’s ‘You Can Have What You Want’ is hailed as “his best yet”. Is this the sign of a mature and adult artist? Does this mean his music will only be appreciated by those who really know what good sound is? If that’s the case, what an odd bill we have tonight.

Papercuts is headlining what seems to be a fairly young and trendy bill. With support from Kent’s young guitar lads, It Hugs Back, and South-East London’s surf-punk Trailer Trash Tracys, the crowd is set to be quite a mish mash of down and out twenty somethings and fresh from the city thirty somethings.

The Legion is less than half full as TTT take to the stage and perform their short but deeply, deeply sweet set of five tracks. With soon to be released single ‘Candy Girl’ and other MySpace upload ‘Strangling Good Guys’ hitting the spot especially well. Front lady, Suzanne Aztoria is the only woman to grace the stage tonight, and what grace indeed! With a hauntingly beautiful voice and presence which oozes comfort and sensuality, TTT put on quite a hypnotic show. However, this only lulls us into a false sense of security as It Hugs Back clamber on next.

Clearer, no reverb, a return to the classic rock gig. Long hair, awkwardness; what we have here are guys who are really into their guitars. Toe-tapping beats, yes, but nothing more, nothing that stops all train of thought and halts, making one stand in awe and reverence. Appreciating and longing. But the crowd seem a little more into it. Maybe that’s cause IHB are the in-betweeners. They lead from one to the other… Although apart from perhaps a closeness in age, I can’t really see a link to the previous lot.

Papercuts arrive to a packed out room. Four guys, all older (wiser?) stand picking and tweaking, preparing to please the impatient thirty (forty?) somethings all gradually getting more and more pissed. Groping one another… A first chord crashes, soon follows a piece of equipment, “Sorry guys, something fell off the amp. We’re gonna have to start again… That was a sound check.” No it wasn’t. But good vibes all round, no hard feelings, friend. The set includes tracks from all three albums; an even, fair and good choice considering the audience seem to know every single song. This is a fan-fest. ‘Dear Employee’ from ‘Can’t Go Back’ is a joyous event all round. It’s followed by three songs from the new record. These are all just as well-received. No surprise; to any true Quever fan, this record has been around for ages and everyone should have it. Album of the week chez Rough Trade? Duh, of course! Insanely catchy ‘The Machine Will Tell Us So’ and ‘Future Primitive’ get the guys both onstage and off moving. The drummer does a little jig, as does the bassist, who, up until this point, has seemed a bit stiff. Comfort? Starting to feel at ease? “Thanks guys, you’ve all been really great. Seriously, you’re the best. We’ve got two songs left to play now.” Or so he thinks. After floating through first album fave ‘Poor And Free’ and second album big one ‘John Brown’, the band try and escape but are kept on for another twenty minutes or so. Big style encore.

It’s no bother though, whether you want to continue listening or not, the drummer is really fit.