February 7, 2025

Bywater Call – Live in Leeds 2024 – “the sound is unstoppable”

Live at Brudenell Social Club, Leeds 19th October 2024

What a band! Seven people make for a big sound and it’s blues-soul in the same warm, heartfelt spirit as the Tedeschi-Trucks Band or Little Feat. Almost matching the gorgeous vocals of Susan Tedeschi; when the band is rolling and Meghan Parnell is belting, the sound is unstoppable.

It’s a band of individual talents, melded like a good whisky blend. The visual focal point is Meghan, diminutive but atop 4-inch heels, her perfect blues voice loud, vulnerable when it needs to be but mostly indomitable and commanding. Dave Barnes plays steel finger slide on his Resonator guitar, creating singing lines and frequent solos. Mike Meusel stands out for his melodic runs on the bass – a funky 5-string feel creating a wiggle and getting a lyrical solo on new song, ‘Sunshine’.

The band has no rhythm guitarist, meaning the propulsion is bass, piano and drum-based, making a warm sound, nicely different. Sadly the keys are mixed lower than they might be, with less of the organ swirl I’ve heard from the band, however the trumpet and sax enrich the sound and detail is added with cowbells and a few tambourines. It brings on swaying and some dancing from the crowd – those that aren’t transfixed by the big sound and amazing vocals. That voice is so strong that Meghan starts ‘Colours’ with guitar and her unmiked voice. The unamplified vocals reach the back of the room and the crowd hush to appreciate the marvel.

Half the set is drawn from the most recent album (they’re proud of it, of course) but they open with a couple of early ones and a new song (‘Sunshine’) before closing with a storming ‘Sweet Maria’ from the new album. A confident band, much of the set has the sound of Americana classics, the sort of skill The Band had for creating new that sounded old. Speaking of which, they drop in a cover of Led Zeppelin’s ‘Kashmir’, playing the riff on the horns and going wild on a keyboard solo.

Songs cover tales of characters from the hard-pressed to the seedy to everyday heroes, from love to getting by to standing proud. The sound frequently hits a rolling dancing groove, the funky style Little Feat used to do but warmed into a Memphis soul gumbo that steps along funkily. Last year this band was on stage one night out of every three and it shows in the taut interplay and organic sound. This is such a solid and swinging sound that I’m amazed to still be seeing them in a 500 capacity venue.

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