by Ben Clark
photos by Hannah Mesquitta
January is a month that has become synonymous with many things; resolutions, quiet weekend nights in, the breaking of aforementioned resolutions and the endless list of artists tipped to shape the sound of the next twelve months. Radio stations and record labels clamour like jesters at court to let YOU know exactly who will be you next favourite band. More often than not, you’ve forgotten who these bright new stars are quicker than you have that you’re still paying the local gym £30 a month for that membership you never use. Every now and then though, a gem is revealed. Yes they are sometimes rough around the edges and little green at the ears but their talent is unable to be hidden by the dross surrounding them. Enter, King Charles.
Having been beating around for a few years – a notable Glastonbury set back in 2009 kept the BBC busy for a few weeks with replays – a strong effort with single Mississippi Isabel has led to him being added to the forefront of new acts for 2012 and, as tonight shows, this is for good reason. Effortlessly marrying influences from Prince to the Beach Boys leaving no prisoners in-between, King Charles is someone to truly get excited about and the Wedgewood Rooms was the setting for his first Portsmouth show since his debut Southsea Fest performance back in 2010.
First on were local act Melodramas who ran through their repertoire with confidence and precision. Angular, pop guitar and keyboard melodies complemented by a strong rhythm section made for a set that was easy on the ears without straying too far from the modern indie blueprint. Lead singer Matt Woolway was not too chatty with the crowd, but for a support slot of this kind, that is not necessarily a bad thing. The majority of the audience tonight were around for King Charles and not Melodramas, so letting the music do the talking as it were was always going to be the best way to work the set and the pockets of dancing club goers in the crowd supported this choice. With new EP Kids being released in early March, they can reasonably be hoping for a few returning audience members.
Next up was the main attraction of the night, King Charles. Straight away, the quality of the headlining man is apparent. To liken him to a cross between the Beach Boys and Prince wouldn’t do justice because he has so much more going on than these influences, notable though they are. Throughout the set, he draws on rhythms reminiscent of Peter Gabriel, bluesy distorted guitars that would do a nineties Metallica proud and manages to draw them together seamlessly with the pop hooks that have garnered him such attention in the last twelve months. Talking is kept to a minimum and, quite frankly not really needed as the performance is flawless – special note at this point to the backing band who are all masters of their instruments – and all released material stands up well in the live environment.
With all this said though, there is a down side in that the audience didn’t really seem to realise how good King Charles was. Throughout the forty five minutes or so of performance, there isn’t a moment where chatter can’t be heard and the crowd didn’t ever seem to truly embrace the energy coming from the stage. This was a real shame as, toward the end of the set, you could see the band lose touch with the crowd and start looking at the clock, knowing that their efforts were falling on deaf ears. By the time the encore came around even a cover of Billy Joel’s We Didn’t Start The Fire fell flat with zero sing along participation from the crowd.
It is sometimes the worst shame of all when a talented musician’s performance is marred by their audience and tonight that was the case. This is not to say that people didn’t enjoy what they heard and saw – many will likely be in attendance again and purchase the music – it is just that they perhaps didn’t appreciate it for what it was worth, a stand out performance from what will surely be one of 2012’s best artists.
