LIVE(STREAM) REVIEW: VOLA @ Live From The Pool, North Zealand, Denmark
Having always made thought provoking, dynamic music, it seems only natural that VOLA would accompany that with lusciously evocative visuals for their first livestream live show, Live From The Pool. Filmed in an abandoned military camp in Auderød in North Zealand, the building has become part of the nature park there. This means that all the vegetation and natural reclamation within the space is real, and feels very tactile. In conjunction with that, the light show of minimalist LED rods arranged in a scattered manner around the space adds an extra level of juxtaposition between the man made and the natural world.
It’s beautiful from the off, a pale glow keeping a general cold light over the band while the sublime 24 Light-Years kicks off the set. It’s a strong start with some of the most anticipated favourites in Alien shivers and Head Mounted Sideways. With this being the first time many will hear live versions of the tracks from Witness, it’s a really exciting visual feast of over an hour of material through VOLA’s back catalogue.
Ruby Pool is exceptionally executed, with keys especially feeling crisp and prominent and the drums snappy and barking. It’s a softer song that benefits from all the open space around VOLA and as the evident inspiration for the naming and location of this live show, the crimson lighting is especially immersive.
With an extended bass intro and some reimagining in the arrangement, Your Mind Is A Helpless Dreamer is very exciting to head in this set, and Whaler is a blinding performance from all. These are tracks that displays the gentle side and the technically proficiency of the band, to have these close up angles of the band is really great for those who miss checking out a bands gear and techniques at live gigs.
There’s evidently some sample and backing track use throughout, and generally it’s not an issue as it’s part and parcel of live music. However, it’s only a falter on songs like These Black Claws, where the instrumentation feels sparse compared to the pre-recorded material. It’s also just a little bit of a shame that nothing special came from the featured verse by Shahmen, perhaps the inclusion of a “live” recording of that verse to be played over the room, instead of the studio version. As there was no reimagined material on this part, it results in the band practically stationary in the dark.
Overall, this is a wonderful production that has had the upmost care put into it. There’s a point to be made, however, that this isn’t strictly a completely live performance, as there’s evidently been cuts and edits in order to get the best looking and sounding performance. That might not satisfy those who want the warts and all, what happens happens experience of live music, but there’s no denial that there’s been so much love and care put into making this set. Depending on the audio restrictions of the device you catch this on, the very nature of using an echoey space like an abandoned swimming pool can, in places, leave the more complex and chaotic songs feeling muddy and hard to follow, like Smartfriend where the verse vocals are barely audible and it’s hard to grasp where you’re up to in the song.
Aside from these qualms, as a production, it’s a spectacular event, and the stripped-down version of Gutter Moon is possibly one of the most outstanding. A beautifully lit performance, as Asger stands alone, a wash in warm amber light. It’s moments like this that will stand out as real treats for the audience, and that capture the spirit of live music that we’re all itching to experience again.
VOLA have delivered a beautiful video production with Live From The Pool, and executed a stunning concept by using the naturally reclaimed space as a gorgeous backdrop for the music. Phenomenally performed, there are a few short comings of the technology when capturing a pure live sound from inside the pool, but the accomplishment of the musicianship will only leave fans even more excited to see this in the flesh.
Rating: 7/10
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