Edinburgh based STFU have been going now for nine years, with several iterations of line up along the way and six excellent albums. Their style has evolved over the years, starting from a bluegrass background, adding in Scottish folk influences, and, on the last two CDs, coming up with a more ambitious orchestrated sound. Most of their songs are self-penned and have become increasingly thematic and political over the years.
In front of an enthusiastic home crowd they performed several numbers from the latest album, The Chuck Norris Project, and a selection of songs from their now extensive back catalogue. A six piece line up with double bass, percussion, two guitars, fiddle and banjo, backed up for the opening numbers by Kieran Lambie on clarinet who added the cinematic quality that is a noticeable feature of the latest project.
Three members of the band handle the vocals, with the bulk falling to lead guitarist Rory Butler who is proving to be one of the best front men the band has ever had. His voice works well with the wide variety of the musical styles the band now exhibits. One of the highlights of the evening was his rendition of the gloriously black Days by the Seaside With Ice Cream, telling the tale of a wife burying on the beach the husband she has quite literally just axed.
The band has developed a signature style for the stage, the lead musicians and singers sharing one central microphone, choreographing their movements in and out and always just managing to avoid the moment when one of them receives a fiddle bow in the eye! For their encore they join the audience on the floor, play acoustically, and lead the crowd in singing a gospel song. And when it's time for the band introductions they each take it in turn to acquaint us with one of their colleagues. Not always politely....
The driving force behind Southern Tenant, and the one constant across the years, is banjo player Pat McGarvey. Who has also penned a great deal of the band's material and may just be one of the best songwriters you've never heard of. His finger picking backing is an essential in the STFU sound, and his sometimes rambling song introductions are part of the charm of the act.
You'll have probably guessed by now that this is a band we've been to see many times before and tonight was just another in a string of excellent gigs. Great to see Ciaran Ryan being given a chance to show his fiddling skills with an exhilarating set of Irish tunes that had the place rocking. That's the same Ciaran Ryan we saw earlier in the week performing with the wonderful Dallahan.
As well as some great songs and a variety of musical styles what you get from a STFU evening is a sense of fun and sheer enjoyment. Catch them next time they're on tour.
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