Charlie Boyer and the Voyeurs at The Garage
Despite coming off a successful support tour with indie rockers TOY and the release of their debut single, I Watch You, 70s glam-rock enthusiasts Charlie Boyer and the Voyeurs played a relatively monotonous set last night at The Garage.
Before setting the stage, the packed London haunt had just witnessed an absolute corker of a set by dark psychedelics The Wytches and were eager for more innovative sounds and unruly stage antics. To say the Voyeurs did not meet this standard is an understatement: they came out and effectively killed any energy the crowd had left.
For a group that promotes itself as having glam-rock influences there was a surprising lack of cool platform-soled riffs. In fact, there was practically none, as the band relied heavily on basic chord structures and repetitive shimmering guitar flecks that made each song blend insipidly into the next. One song that echoed a track Marc Bolan had left to wither in his back trouser pocket showed signs of potentially breaking this vanilla sequence but again fell into a flavourless spin, awash with watery vocals and peculiar circus-organ backing.
A few eyes from the crowd wandered to the mixing desk to fault the production crew for the dip in quality, but having made two previous acts sound like superstars, it was fair to assume the issues came from the stage.
Perhaps the most distressing issue of the night was the band’s stage presence – or lack thereof. An air of arrogance hovered over the gaunt Boyer and his Voyeurs as they stood like statues for a 30-minute set, as if too cool for the room.
Not all acts are going to be rabid hooligans, tearing up their equipment after a set, but unlike other bands of the evening, The Voyeurs just didn’t seem to enjoy what they were playing and apparently wanted to be somewhere else entirely.
Jack Hill
Photos: Erol Birsen
For further information and future events visit Charlie Boyer and the Voyeurs’ website here.
Watch the video for I Watch You here:
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