Surprise Chef at Bristol Beacon: No thrills needed in this intricately arranged live show
Who needs tricks and cheap thrills when you’ve got Surprise Chef? Going against all expectations the name might suggest, the band’s live show relies heavily on an unfiltered showing of pure musicality, and in doing so, proves music needs little in the way of anything else.
The cartoon artwork for their latest album, Superb, plays on the big screen behind, moving as it does so and setting out a psychedelic stall for the band to follow. But there’s no dramatic entrance, no tension buildup as we wait for the band to arrive. Instead, with the lights barely dimming and the first animation only just concluding, the band step on stage, eager to get going.
Because this is a band focused solely on instrumentation. Minor introductions are made before the band’s de facto MC for the evening, Lachlan Stuckey, recedes to his position near the drum kit and plays the opening note of ‘Sleep Dreams’.
The opening song from their latest album is fitting, for it unravels its arrangements one member at a time, offering a perfect introduction for the uninitiated, and a soft, almost teasing beginning for those fully informed. Desperate to immerse themselves in the full band arrangement, ‘Sleep Dreams’ tempers expectations in a live setting and forces your attention to focus solely on each instrument.
As the setlist continues on through different parts of the band’s records, they execute exactly what I was hoping they would before entry: seamless transitions. Not in the prog-rock sense, where the lines are outrightly blurred and no real obvious identity presents itself in each song, but finding smooth olive branches to extend one song from the next.
Andrew Congues almost conducts this from centre stage, providing a steady yet intricate beat for the band to follow. But even when he flourishes into a full performing opportunity, he never loses sight of the song. Rhythmic consistency is key, and Congues provides it by setting the perfect tempo for the jazz-laden melodies to fly around.
All because Jethro Curtin is on hand to provide the much sought-after embellishment. Early on in the set, when the band rip into ‘Talent Stick’, he makes it clear that wild ad-libs and experimentation certainly have a place in a Surprise Chef show, so long as there is meaning. Keyboard solos and instrumental breakdowns are provided and intricately so, but they almost waltz in tandem with the rhythm section and ensure this entire sense of musical hypnosis remains.
A Surprise Chef live show is exactly what you would expect it to be. It’s dense, technical and maybe at times begging for a slight increase in wild showmanship, but that was a feeling I grappled with. Why should they deviate from the way in which their recorded art has been created? Devoid of self-indulgent thrills and rather celebrating the instrumental brilliance that exists within the band. Sure, you may leave the gig with a heavy exhale of breath, but you won’t leave with any doubt that this is a seriously accomplished live outfit.
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