If this is only Bird Cage Theatre’s second ever gig then they are a band to watch.
It was a super hot Saturday and I jumped on a bus to Edinburgh to see Bird Cage Theatre‘s headline show at the Voodoo Rooms in Edinburgh. A band that came to my attention thanks to the power of social media algorithms. What an absolutely stunning venue! A lovely setting for a really great night showcasing what Scotland has to offer.
Lori
A young singer songwriter often found busking on the streets of Glasgow and Edinburgh. Lori’s music is best described as indie/pop and her latest single patience is on Spotify now. A song about coming of age and realising your potential. ‘Younger me was never enough’ a lyric that absolutely resonated with me and probaby to many others. Lori was enthusiastic in sharing her love of writing new material and performing it live, as she performed a new track in blue with us all.
Don’t you know it’s not your fault, you’ve just simply had enough.
Lori is a fantastic songwriter, a story teller who’s art is relatabe to the crowd. She has a lovely unique voice with, if you are a fan of female singer-songwriter Nina Nesbitt then Lori should be added to your playlists now. Lori ended her set on a stunning cover of Nothing But Thieves ‘impossible I could almost feel every word she was singing. She has a fantastic piano version of this on Spotify so check it out.
Michael Cassidy
Contemporary folk singer songwriter Michael Cassidy and his guitarist Michael McGovern literally brought the roof down at the Voodoo Rooms (some roof felt fell down during their set) handling it like pros! “I’m going to play some songs, some that Michael hasn’t heard either. Don’t worry though, he’s a real musician.” The duo work extremely well together, we got to witness the magic of two talented musicians play a set figuring it out as they went, incredibly authentic and showed the capabilities of them both, vibing off each other. Michael has a very strong Scottish voice which carried really well in the venue. The vocals and harmonies were both bold, beautiful and came across really natural. We got a mix from Cassidy’s discography; oblivious and tell me who you are while also hearing a fairly new tune pile up telling the tale of things going wrong then more going wrong and even more going wrong. A tune with plenty fun finger picking guitar playing and very relatable frustrations.
It never rains, it always pours.
These two brought a comical factor to the night with their stage patter, however all can be forgiven as musically they are cohesive and harmonised seamlessly and delivered a dynamic and inviting set of original material.
Bird Cage Theatre
This talented 5 piece really pulled it out the bag, smashing a busy Saturday night at the Voodoo Rooms in Edinburgh. There latest single Fire went down was a strong choice of opener. Front man Chris Molloy takes front and centre starting the track just him and his guitar, a little nervous initially but this was never noticed in his rich vocal tone. Once the band came in and the chorus hits, smiles filled the stage one member at a time, showing just how much this moment obviously means to them all. Drummer Simon Usher was a delight to watch, playing drum parts and fills outwith what you may expect he did far more than maintain the tempo for the band. The sound of Simon’s snare was incredible, each strike resonanted through the room filling the space without being overpowering. The venue’s acoustics enhanced the band’s performance and sound, making for emotive listening, I closed my eyes several times just to soak it all in.
Keys/Synth player Stephen Dennis comes alive on stage, he lit up the room. Loved the addition of backing vocals on one of the tracks, feel it adds more texture and is a good support to Chris to fill out the sound so I’d love to hear more in future as some harmonies throughout would lift the songs expressiveness. One of the songs in the set had an 80s style synth section in it, which was completetly left field but worked so well. People were actually talking about it in the queue for the bar at the end of the show!
The night obviously meant a lot to the band as they echoed their thanks to the audience, other artists and techs also hearing that this was the first time Chris’s Dad had come to see him perform, cheers filled the room. I very much hope he enjoyed the show as much as I did. There is a lot of passion behind these songs which was felt hearing them being played live tonight. It was evident that there was a lot of love and support in the room for the band which early on is a really great sign. I’d have not known it was only their second gig together, the band all play great small tweaks like song transitions and talking to the audience will absolutely come in time. Musically, it was polished and they all looked like they were having a great time on stage which for me makes for an unforgettable show.
Bird Cage Theatre have been working hard recently in the studio with Dan Gautreau of First Cut Music so I’m very much looking forward to new music coming and seeing what direction the band takes with new material and different production.
