It seems crazy now but I first come across Anohni & The Johnsons in the extreme metal magazine, Terrorizer, as they were about to release their debut album. Maybe it wasn't so crazy at the time because their first album was released on Current 93's mainman David Tibet's label and Current 93, although not that extreme themselves, were darlings of Terrorizer. Their image grabbed my attention and stuck in my memory, just not enough to entice me in to checking them out.
I, like many others, didn't actually get into them until a few years later when they released 'I Am A Bird Now', which the British music press raved about. I bought it the day it came out after reading some reviews (probably in NME and Observer Music Monthly). It blew my mind the moment I put it on. From the very first seconds of 'Hope There's Someone', it just touched my soul. Her rich voice, reminiscent of Nina Simone, was such a perfect mix of desperation, hope and yearning.
Reunited with the Johnsons after a couple of solo records, tonight is the first show in Manchester in years.
An ominous rumble fills the hall as a white cloaked figure with antlers enters the stage, engaged in some kind of communion. It is a piece of theatre which would give Heilung a run for their money. There is an extended intro to 'Why Am I Alive Now?' before Anohni takes to the stage to add her heavenly vocals. There is a nice looseness to The Johnsons' playing which is both jazzy and lush. '4 Degrees' is very dramatic. A sweeping 'Cut The World' is amazing. Anohni's vocals are everything. Evocative. Emotional. Fragile. Defiant. Sad. 'Hopelessness' is warm yet imbued with a sense of despair. It also manages to be hopeful at the same time, It is how she manages to combine all of these things at once which makes her so special. 'It Must Change' has soulful, jazzy touches, like much of the new material. 'You Are My Sister' has different phrasing yet loses none of its power. The extended spoken word section in the middle only adds to this. However, for such an elequent lyricist, she struggles for words when she talks in between songs and she does this quite often. This does affect the momentum of the show. She sings the first verse of 'Motherless' without music or a microphone and it is spine tingling. The Nina Simone comparisons are really apparent here. 'Drone Bomb Me's electronics add a welcome change of pace. 'Man Is The Baby' is utterly stunning, before the mysterious figure makes another appearance. Encore 'Hope There's Someone' is a rather stop/start affair with Anohni singing a line and then stopping to talk like she's remembered something really important that she really needed to tell us. Unfortunately, this robs her best song of it's impact. The climax is still tremendous but I'm still a little disappointed and I don't think I'm the only one. This is still a minor criticism in an otherwise excellent show.
Anohni & The Johnsons ****
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