She Drew The Gun, Mamatung, Charlie McKeon at Liverpool Music Week: Leaf, Liverpool

She Drew The Gun

Finishing off their tour on home territory, She Drew The Gun return to Leaf, and Getintothis’ Ryan Craig was there to witness the power of the four piece.

On a night when most are out dressing up and waiting in obnoxiously long queues for the Halloween weekend, this writer opts for the more cosy mixture of a dimly lit room and some compelling live music in the form of She Drew The Gun and friends.

Having previously played at Leaf for the 50 Years of Revolver celebration (and performing an even more psychedelic rendition of The Beatles‘ Tomorrow Never Knows) She Drew The Gun were now to showcase songs from their debut album Memories of the Future.

However, first to give a gentle kick start the evening was solo artist Charlie McKeon, whose warm semi subdued vocals set the tone for the night. With only his guitar for assistance, influences from Nick Drake and Paul Simon were clear to see as Charlie managed to calculate the perfect ratio of lyrics to guitar.

With only a 20 minute set, McKeon had managed to display a palette of poetry. Although the crowd was still mostly unsettled, those that got in early definitely had no qualms about the decision.

Next up were freak-folk group Mamatung, who were playing in place of We Are Catchers who unexpectedly had to pull out of the night for reasons as yet unknown.

The trio made the most of the opportunity, capturing the audience completely. Describing these girls is like describing your favourite food to someone who has never experienced it. The sheer range of instruments used by the threesome was impressive alone. With bird whistles, ukuleles, a blow organ and all the usual suspects too.

If the audience was anything to go by, it seems Mamatung already have a fanbase to be reckoned with – and rightly so. The group offered praise to She Drew The Gun for allowing them to tour with such a “revolutionary band“.

Wondering who else made an appearance for Liverpool Music Week? Well, take a look here

The magic continued with She Drew The Gun, who received a warm welcome from the now packed out room. Each member of the band wearing skeleton face paint, all in the spirit of Halloween.

Something that immediately stood out was how lead vocalist Louisa Roach would create short rhymes as introductions to many of the songs, each being incredibly witty and well thought out.

In an unexpected twist, it was now time for SDTG‘s “token cover song“; the unexpected twist being that it was in fact Overload by Sugababes. To say they made this song their own would be an understatement. The lyrics being the only give away that it was a classic Sugababes song.

Cover song over, it was time to get real with a track called Poem. It was at this point the band truly flourished, delivering a dose of raw and powerful words. The beautifully crafted lyrics flowed so smoothly, delivering a dark impact with its message straight from the soul. The bare bones approach only made the feel more intimate.

With lyrics about problems that we all have seen or have faced ourselves, the title couldn’t be more correct. The words would still have the same influence if just read off a sheet of paper, and is that not true song writing?