LIVE REVIEW: DVNE @ The Crofters Rights, Bristol
For over two decades now, The Crofters Rights in Bristol has been a staple of the city’s bohemian culture. Located in the free-loving and vibrant borough of Stokes Croft, it has played host to a plethora of bands that have gone on to become international superstars, from THE ARCTIC MONKEYS and BRING ME THE HORIZON to IDLES and LEWIS CAPALDI, whilst its also a hotbed for DJ’s to bring tunes and beats for events that last long into the night. In recent times, a second, smaller room has been added to increase revenue and both are at capacity tonight with gigs at the heavier end of the spectrum; the main room is where the two acts for this particular occasion (DVNE and PIJN) are found.
As Denial from 2018’s Loss begins to ring out through the room, those who are accustomed to Manchester’s PIJN once again slip into that hypnotic place that only the band can conjure. A sextet who looked at post-metal and thought “yes, but what if you added a violinist?”, it’s quite something to see a band with as outstanding a reputation among the British scene play a venue of this stature outright, let alone in a support slot; they could arguably headline venues twice this size and fill them under their own steam. The biggest case against this, however, is they would probably need another album under their belt; Loss is still a colossal body of work, but it remains PIJN‘s most recent, non-collaborative studio effort and, throughout the show, one does wonder when new material will surface given that the songs are beginning to tread ground on the verge of ‘well worn’ status. Regardless, though, PIJN are still a formidable live act and, befitting this prowess, they are absolutely gorgeous tonight – instrumental music is incredibly difficult to pull off because, in a lot of cases, the songs live and die on how well they can retain someone’s attention; PIJN are masters at this. It’s another excellent performance, but new material needs to happen before they come round again, else people will begin to tire.
Rating: 8/10
Opening with a song that clocks in at over nine minutes in length is ambitious, but Scotland’s DVNE aren’t your average band, and Towers goes down brilliantly, the vocal trade off between singer Victor Vicart and guitarist Dan Barter a particular strong point. One thing noticeable from the very off is that there is absolutely no way you shouldn’t like DVNE if you like, for example, IRON MAIDEN; this is NWOBHM-esque riffs, guitar passages and solos mixed with the expansive world of prog and post-metal in a way never heard before. The Edinburgh five piece have hit on something extraordinary with their sound, and it helps that they’re not too shabby live, either – they’re on blistering form tonight and helped out by an incredibly responsive, sold out crowd – there’s plenty of passionate appreciation at the end of songs and the reaction during renditions might not be one of moshing, but it’s clear how many individuals are living in the moment and being engulfed by the music on offer.
Most tracks are from 2021’s excellent Etemen Ænka, like Court Of The Matriarch and the eleven-minute Satuya, but DVNE have also inserted a couple of older tracks like Thirst from Asheran and Of Blade and Carapace from 2017’s Aurora Majesty, the latter of which brings a triumphant performance to a close. Like their support, DVNE are destined for bigger venues than this and, off the back of the response tonight and strength of their music, that’s likely sooner rather than later. There isn’t a New Wave of British Prog Metal right now, but we may have found a band who could spearhead one.
Rating: 9/10
Check out our photo gallery of the night’s action in Bristol from Serena Hill Photography here:
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