LONDON, 12 BAR: 24.01.05
On a drunken evening watching the lovely Emiliana Torrini I became acquainted with the guy next to me. It turns out his name is Joe and is new to London. At the end of the night he invites us to a gig he is playing at the 12 Bar the following week.
Out of curiosity I decided to go along even though it was zero degrees outside. To be honest I was not expecting much. I had never been to the 12 Bar before so the night was full of curiosity and surprises. The tiny venue is off Charing Cross Road and the stage is so small that it can literally fit one man and his guitar.
Whilst soaking in the atmosphere of this strange venue Joe comes on stage. He starts singing and what a voice! He sounds like Bonnie Prince Billy and he sings in the same style, lo-fi alt-country. His voice is warm yet fragile. His songs are simple and quietly beautiful. Half way through his set he introduces himself, says that he is here on behalf of Elephant Micha and that this is the first time that he played outside North America. It was a very pleasant half- hour and I was very glad that I made the effort to go along.
The next day I thought I would do some research on who he is exactly. On their website (www.elephantmicah.com) it seems he is part of a collective who release their own music and seem to tour round America.
Anyway if you happen to see that he is playing again, catch him! It’s a very pleasant experience.
Review by Sonia Pagliari