Live Review

Norman Palm – The Old Blue Last, London

• 1st Apr 2011

I’ll admit it, he had me at hello. I think it was the Keith Haring t-shirt.

The other punters upstairs at the Old Blue Last in east London were all substantially cooler than me though, and need much more convincing. His shy, accented greeting went largely unnoticed by the fairly small crowd, and the socialising continued unabated through this sweet German chap’s first few numbers.

Amid the chatter, “Start/Stop” worked rather well in its pared-back acoustic version (although I missed the ukulele – how hard would it be to pack one of those Norman, really?). And as the drinks clinked, the country vibe of “Landslide” clunked comfortably away on the stage as if that’s where it was always meant to be.

It was all very nice, if a bit too singer-songwriter-in-the-corner-of-the-pub-like. But then something happened. “This is where things get a bit dramatic,” said Palm apologetically, and out boomed “Phantom Lover”, so much deeper and darker and more atmospheric than I’d ever given it credit for on the album. His unusual voice took on an element of creepiness and angst that made beers stop midway towards mouths.

The electronics that had previously served more as a backing track kicked in, Palm’s guitar was slung back over his shoulder unused, and we were treated to some synthesiser pootling that was just a joy to hear. I like to think I saw at least one jaw drop. The talking certainly stopped. Shoreditch’s beautiful people turned towards the stage.

No need to apologise for the drama Norman, it won ‘em over in the end. The following track “Sleeper” almost had them dancing. And we sailed on happily through to the end of the set watching this endearingly unpretentious guy groove away next to his keyboard, pausing occasionally to push his oversized 80’s specs back on.

Palm recently told Glasswerk he’s working on a project that’s “exploring experimental electronic music combined with my vocals”. If Wednesday night is anything to go by, that seems a damn fine idea. Then perhaps his next London gig will get a little more of the attention music of this quality deserves.