Pale Blue Eyes @ Bodega

The Mic's Liz Clarke headed down to see alternative indie trio Pale Blue Eyes at Bodega on their headline UK tour, following the release of new album 'New Place'.

Support came from Nottingham singer-songwriter Davoli delivering a stripped-down solo set, which allowed for his often observational lyrics to shine at the forefront, with his standout cover of the Silver Jews classic Trains Across the Sea fitting the tone of his song-writing style perfectly (this song choice got a very loud "WOO!" out of me, which should surprise nobody). After this, Pale Blue Eyes took to the stage on a busy Sunday night with Scrolling, a luscious and melodic track which fuses the guitar distortion of shoegaze with a sense of rhythm, borrowed from Krautrock, in a way that is indicative of their broader sound. The standout track from their new album, New Place, the reverb-heavy Rituals is also played early in the set, and this track features a hook which is similarly representative of their whole project: “The past and present collide.” This lyric speaks to the method which their music takes: fusing the analogue power of guitar distortion and vintage-sounding synthesisers that drives bands like Slowdive and Stereolab (the former of whom they supported on a European tour last year) with a distinctly crisp and contemporary production style, where modern vocal effects and sleekness are clearly observable even in a live setting. 

Also played early in the set is the track Under Northern Sky, from their debut album Souvenirs, which borrows from more direct and stripped-back forms of indie rock and post-punk: culminating in a hypnotic bass solo which buzzes from the monitors where you’d normally find a chorus. Though not their most compelling song on record, its unique structure comes to the forefront live. Drummer Lucy Board is exceptional, keeping the band’s rhythm-heavy structure organised, and this is clearer nowhere than on one half of their fantastic debut single, Motionless. Another great piece of motorik-via-My Bloody Valentine, its danceable rhythm in the chorus gets an initially somewhat stagnant crowd into a broader state of movement, which builds into a slightly extended outro of blissful rhythm. 

Our Lost Words comes soon after, and is another definitive show of the band’s strengths: the fantastic drumming and bass playing are juxtaposed with a harmonious chorus of synthesisers which glides alongside them, culminating in an almost glacial sound. The track Now and Again, meanwhile, shines because of Matt Board’s vocals coming to the forefront: it is more stripped-down and ambient without their distinctive wall of sound, giving his angelic vocals a place to be showcased in a genre where vocal skill is often buried. The track’s quietness causes it to run the risk of being buried amidst their more expressive songs, and yet it stands alone as a memorable moment precisely because of its contrast from many of their other tracks. 

Chelsea is the perfect song to follow this, being almost ballad-esque in the beginning and sharing DNA with early twee pop, before descending into one of their prettiest breakdowns: with a twinkling synthesiser sound hovering at the top of the song’s sound. Soon after, the show closes with Half Light, one of the band’s longest songs. It’s almost gothic in its combination of a solemn, lower-pitched vocal melody and use of keyboard sounds which resemble a funeral organ, and yet its melancholy tone does not feel out of place as an outro for the show. The song’s final moments ascend into a heavenly crescendo which almost sounds like being face-to-face with the very hypothetical concept of eternity: repetitive and yet filled with haunting beauty.

Pale Blue Eyes are a band with a rapidly expanding fanbase (before the show, I met a woman who travels following their tours) and with this show, the reasons for it have become clear to me. They fuse genres and techniques from the past and present seamlessly with extremely competent musicianship at the core, and there is a clear love for their work present even just from the glimmers in their eyes as they play and advertise merch between songs. Though some songs do bleed into one another and not each one is wholly distinctive, they nonetheless put on an impressive show filled with layers of stunning reverb and a sense of passion that cannot be faked.

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Edited by Bethany Coldwell

Photos courtesy of Pale Blue Eyes on Facebook