The combination of Alice Russell’s smokey tones and the South American inflected drive of Combo Barbaro proved irresistible to the packed house at Manchester’s Band on the Wall, on Friday. Combo Barbaro put together by the Worcester-born but Colombian resident, Will ‘Quantic’ Holland, contained a Colombian percussionist, a Peruvian keyboard player, long-time Russell collaborator, Mike Skinner, on violin, and Holland himself on guitar. But such was the din from the audience that it was impossible to catch the names of most of the band. Most of the repertoire came from Russell and Holland’s new album ‘Look Around the Corner’. But, fortunately, Russell did reprise some material from her highly rated ‘Pot of Gold’ CD.
Russell cites Minnie Riperton as a major influence, but her great strength is belting out a good lyric rather than Riperton’s filigree trips up to top C. This was particularly true on the tracks ‘Turn and Run’ and ‘Living the Life of a Dreamer’ from ‘Pot of Gold’. The band that played at Band on the Wall really cooked and Russell rode over the top of the music with great confidence and strength. In this, she was ably assisted on backing vocals by Mike Skinner, who’s that rare thing, a really swinging violinist, entirely capable of trading licks with pianist, Alfredito Linares. At one point, percussionist Freddy Colorado led a conga around the already rammed dance floor.
Holland and Russell produce a distinctly retro-seventies R&B, the kind of R&B that’s profoundly slick, but runs a mile from the smooth edges of the nu-soul divas and their entourages. But this was also a band who were capable of producing a delicate and nuanced version of the Stranglers’ Golden Brown, and obviously South American pieces on which Holland played accordion and Skinner the mandolin.
It’s one of those peculiarities of British popular music, that Alice Russell is so talented yet so unknown. Not unknown to this audience who greeted her with cries of ‘We love you Alice’. Let’s hope this new album, Look Around the Corner, on Tru Thoughts, will create a real breakthrough for her. Here, Russell was singing to the converted; and the whole show drove them wild!
Ian Pople