Yeasayer, ULU, London

For a band who style themselves as ‘Middle Eastern-psych-snap-gospel’, (well, according to Wikipedia anyway) it’s fair to suggest we’re not quite prepared for the type of crowd at tonight’s ULU gig. You don’t expect a young girl screaming at the top of her lungs (into your ear) at the end of every song, akin to a star struck Take That fan at a revival concert, and Yeasayer’s psychedelic undertones don’t quite constitute a girl so pilled up she is constantly bobbing into your face. Sadly, there’s no getting away from the fact that this gig was slightly spoiled by a bizarre and disinterested crowd.

Yeasayer don’t do themselves any favours when they start their set with one of their most gospelly and soothing numbers, ‘No Need To Worry’. Something is already lost. The calming serenity and steady momentum you find in moments of this record have disappeared into a messy clash of extra instruments and undefined harmonies. It doesn’t pick up much, either, as more live songs fail to match the exquisitness of their debut album ‘All Hour Cymbals’. ‘Wait for the Summer’ sparks some interest in the audience but the crucial track, ‘2080’, pricks up the ears of those more interested in their pint/friend/phone, to a performance with more rehearsed energy than any of the other tracks.

Whether it’s the sound of the (god-awful) ULU venue or their own unrefined instrumentation, or both, Yeasayer’s gig is disappointing. Parts of the record seemed altered, and where tweaks here and there are welcomed for a better live experience, some of the songs seem altogether different. Having said that, there are some standout tracks, including the shoulders-above ‘2080’, tribal sounds of ‘Sunrise’, and the brooding ‘Red Cave’. Yeasayer are a band yet to establish a strong enthusiastic fanbase, (something they can’t rely on Jools Holland for) and because of this it seems far too early to chop and change the small setlist they do have.