July Talk at The Dome

Some bands work best in the studio, and some bands are made to perform. July Talk are undeniably the latter, as they uprooted cult Tufnell Park venue The Dome last night with a killer 18-song set that left the entire room buzzing. They made a slick entrance to a pre-recorded spoken word introduction that already sent chills running up spines, accompanied by a heavy blues riff rife with premonition of what was to come.

The Canadian five-piece had the crowd fully under their uproarious spell from the second tune onwards, Summer Dress, that really showed off the sexy call and response vocals going on throughout the show between lead singers Leah Fay and and Peter Dreimanis with his undeniably manly voice and his rock’n’roll look reminiscent of Crybaby-era Johnny Depp. Their duet reached peak intensity during Headsick as they joined in harmony over the heavy guitar-laden chorus. Fans were riled up with cheeky questions like “do we have time for more or do you need to go to bed?” and cooled down with bottles of water. July Talk fed London their soul and their talent with effortless musicality in songs like Gentleman and Picturing Love.

Fay danced irreverently and oh so exuberantly from beginning to end. She was truly contagious, drawing in every last punter and finishing them off with her seductive, breathy voice that could effortlessly switch into full-power mode when needed. The frontwoman exuded strength and sensuality, she demanded respect; she played with people’s phones and rode through the venue on the shoulders of a flabbergasted audience member for their captivating rendition of I’ve Rationed Well.

All this, set to the ripping tones Dreimanis’s and Ian Docherty’s guitars, Josh Warburton’s bass (and some surprising high-pitched backing vocals) and Danny Miles’s drums driving the heavy steam train without a minute of reprieve – save perhaps for the raucous band’s slower, emotional number, Strange Habit, enhanced with Fay’s theatrical sipping from a wine bottle – as well as some dreamy effects produced by a combination of Docherty’s pedal board and cowbell proficiency (notably in Now I Know) and Dreimanis’s keyboards.

The band must have been completely breathless at the end of such a high energy gig, but they didn’t show it one bit. The last track, The Garden, was one of their strongest performances of the night that saw the playful fivesome gliding seamlessly between genres and masterfully appropriating each one, be it metal, blues, dance or country – pigeonholing is never on the menu with July Talk.

Jennifer Sanin
Photos: Filippo L’Astorina

For further information about July Talk and future events visit here.

Watch the video for Picturing Love here: