And So I Watch You From Afar are an instrumental quartet from the North of Ireland. They play Sheffield’s Corporation venue for one night only on their UK tour run.
First up on this incredible lineup for tonight is the Cork-born and raised five-piece post-rock powerhouse God Alone. Their set starts off with harsh-sounding riffs, reverberating bass, and intensified rim clicks. The sounds produced fluctuate between warped and emotive. It’s genre-defying, mind-bending, and skill-combining, with each musician contributing immaculate but raw energy while making their musical delivery look effortless. Guttural screaming is introduced, and highlighted by the intricate melodies from the now ever-clashing, abruptly changing, and full-force instrumentals. They have a unique rapport with each other and also with the crowd; their set comes complete with banter delivered throughout.
Electronic sounds with bass vibrating into our souls is delivered. So many sounds are given all at once and all opposing, but completely unified in their delivery. Synthesized sonic sounding wonders and pauses for effect introduce more high-pitched frequencies and computerized sounds. Their songs are insanely catchy and consistently surprising. Suspended sounds are braced and lead to unexpected combustions of sounds with full force effect at all the right intervals in this phenomenally flawless performance.
Manic screaming is introduced throughout and seems to surprisingly ground the overall sound. Just when you think a song is finished, another layer of creativity is added. They deliver sass while fluctuating between sonic surprises. There’s so much energy coming from them, the crowd can’t help but match their energy and move along.
God Alone breaks all the rules and expels the norms of any music you’ve heard before.
Waldo’s Gift is an experimental band from Bristol in the UK, and they’re up next.
Their set starts off with buzzing frequencies, which are joined by low bass riffs that reverberate and lead into soft but rattly drumming sounds. Low, long, eerie vibrational noises can be heard while warped, distinctive high notes with bell chimes are added until their sound becomes more existential, with lots of intricate noises that come to overshadow the lower ones. The speed accelerates, and we’re into full throttle symphonic chaos with no pauses. Endearing sounds are layered while unfinished cadences are delivered in elite timings.
Crashing thundering bass and drums turn to static while warped electronic sounds and intensified beats lead to high-pitched twinkling notes that all mesh together. The band is in complete concentration throughout, but also expresses a lot of enjoyment; they remain present within the moment. So many layers of depth and complete precision are given by guitar riffs that sound like they’re going in circles in your mind, with notes played so uniquely and swiftly, it sounds dream-like and mesmerizing.
The drummer speaks about the untraditional ways the band started and expressed that they would play a song next that they made up on the spot, and you can’t get more experimental than that! The song is bassy and vibrant with harsh static sounds, which has the crowd’s heads nodding in unison with delight to the beat. Audible gasps and mouths open are given by the audience throughout the whole set, with joyful hollering added in intervals, filling the breaks in musical silence for added atmospheric effect. Sliding scales don’t graduate, they alternate and change frequency seemingly whenever given the chance, thundering drums become isolated only when absolutely necessary.
High, shrill sounds that you can feel inside your teeth and leave lasting impressions on your ears can now be heard. Powerful and magnetizing cinematic stage presence is given while they’re creating and emitting the most insane sounds, where the soft prepares us for the full throttle and gives us time to gather our thoughts before we’re back into the next musical breakdown.
And So I Watch You From Afar
The stage starts off dark, and classical mellow music can be heard on the monitor; delicate notes sound like they’re floating through a gentle breeze, when suddenly the whole stage is illuminated in harsh green lighting, and the tinkling sounds become sharper. There’s a roar of applause from the audience as the band ascends the stage.
Elongated high-pitched noises take us into another world. The melodies emitted are all uniquely defined, and nothing is stagnant; the sounds move with a precise flow.
Every note is delivered like an offering of perfected complexity, and it’s not long before the set gets heavy with insanely high-pitched guitar notes delivered, which ignite our senses, introducing the audience to express themselves by thrashing around with looks of delight and amazement on their faces throughout. Some members of the crowd have their hands to their hearts expressing love, some also have their eyes closed to really block out their other senses to take the sounds in, in this safe and uniquely creative space. Everyone is authentically and uniquely expressing themselves, some by dance, some by moshing, some by headbanging, some by staring in awe, each reaction completely valid.
The band fluctuates effortlessly between all styles and speaks to us through rhythms and harsh flows, and it’s breathtaking to watch. Their music was made to be performed live.
Drums ever booming invite the room to stamp their feet, we feel it in our chests, while we hope the ceiling doesn’t collapse. Power chords and intensified drumming ensue with multiple melodies played all opposingly to each other but working significantly well together.
Musical count-downs lead to guitars being outstretched to the audience, while the highest-pitched notes known to humankind lead to alternative-sounding static sounds.
Gliding from melodic into uncoincidental chaos with ease is what And So I Watch You From Afar does best; there’s something so moving about the fluctuations in the music and in people’s response and reactions to it. The room is filled with joy, and it’s beautiful to feel and be part of. There’s also not a phone in sight, while everyone is just living in the moment… a beautiful rarity to see.
Cow bell, hi hat hitting, and warped electronic sounds become ominous as instruments begin bleeding into each other, the band chants- their voices strong and united before a powerful electric guitar becomes ramped up to play suspenseful riffs that descend the band into darkness, but even when we cannot see them, the sound prevails.
As soon as the music is graduated higher and higher, it then plunges into bass-led darkness, and the pattern is repeated, each time with more mystically intricate layers added in.
So much passion is exuding from the band the whole way through. They speak to the audience about the fundamental need for this kind of gathering of being all together in a room with music, and its importance since it was taken away from us during Covid-19.
Arco string quartet’s sound is delivered through the monitors (the band expressed how they wanted to bring them to play the shows live!), adding a new musical layer to the performance of another beautifully uplifting song, which emulates feelings of hope and is so musically descriptive and emotively charged.
Whisper drums and guitars held low to the floor are played in feathering waves and turn to full blast electrified riffs where the musician’s hands are moving so fast they’re a blur. A pedal board exploded during the set, but we quickly moved on. The guitar(s) solos were ethereal and then magnified, really highlighting the musician’s complex talents.
Siren-like alarm sounds lead us into a giant mosh pit, which seemingly came out of nowhere towards the end of the show. The most heartfelt, honest, grateful applause I’ve ever seen was given to this truly one-of-a-kind performance.
Although the music has no lyrics, the band speaks to you through the music, and it creates a uniquely special connection within the room. The crowd was consistently mesmerized and constantly impressed from the start of the support band to the end of the show.