Launching a brand new single at Rough Trade is a great way to celebrate. We watched indie-folk project Lace Thief perform a languid and vibey show, with strong support from Peter Hall and Cracked Hands...
It’s a different Rough Trade that awaits the audience tonight, gathered for Lace Thief’s evening celebrating the launch of new single Sister of the North. The main space is dotted with art curated by local creator Gemma Vincent, who has curated a thought-provoking collage of images and text. Pinned to cork boards, they urge examination.
The first music of the evening comes courtesy of Peter Hall, himself the launcher of a single - Afterlove - earlier this month. He "may not be one to tell stories while tuning up between songs, like some people", but he can certainly play deeply pretty songs once the tuning is done.
He enthrals with heartfelt ballads of love, lust and archaeology, plucked on acoustic guitar. A highlight is What I Mean to Say, an elegy to the humble letter.
"It's good getting a letter... that's not from a solicitor or energy supplier" he smirks, beforehand.
Cracked Hands are next, presenting poems recited over a shifting soundscape coaxed from an electric guitar and an array of effects pedals. A deft poet, Milla hones in on the beauty in the understated, with works encompassing cooking, the Lidl frozen aisle, and the intricacies of friendship. A standout moment of the evening comes when she explores in beautiful, lyrical depth womanhood and the struggle of reckoning with health and the body. Spoken over the ethereal looped, delayed guitars from bandmate Tom Hooley, the words take on a new dimension that leaves the audience appropriately stunned. Also celebrating the release of new EP Mundane Hope, they absolutely deserve your attention.
Lastly and of course not least, Lace Thief. Headed by Laura Dickinson (interviewed by LeftLion recently), there’s already a sense of triumph even before she and her band take to the stage, such is the success of the night so far. Once the crowd had been suitably "squished in" a bit, the languid chords strike up and spoken words begin to tumble out. Laura begins to sing, her voice smoothly lilting over evocative harmonies, evoking pastoral scenes before the band kicks in and an easy folk vibe takes hold.
Her words describe longing beautifully, and my word can she can really belt out a tune, with a remarkable vibrato that kicks in on those longer notes. Uplifting and soaring, you can really hear the cited influence of Beach House in the languid mood painted by the songs.
Sister of the North is the single being launched tonight, and it is simply lovely coming from the band on stage, with a chorus that sounds heroic. "I’ll follow you up to the North. I bring with me high hopes"… I think it’s safe to say that if they keep on this track, Lace Thief may just find their high hopes met.
Nottingham follows, which so brilliantly displays the wit and warmth of her writing. It’s a paean to this city, one which on the evidence of tonight can lay claim to an eclectic and fertile arts scene. And pigeons. Lots of pigeons.
Lace Thief promise near the end that an album is coming next year. It’s one that is eagerly awaited, with those high hopes promising much.
Lace Thief performed at Rough Trade on 28th September 2024, with support from Peter Hall and Cracked Hands.
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