Having spent the summer touring his record Dreaming is Dead Now around festivals and amassing momentum as one of the UK’s most talked about up-and-coming artists, Skinny Pelembe’s announcement of an autumn UK tour felt like a welcome opportunity to catch him in a more intimate setting. Accompanied by simply a drummer and keys player, he delivered a set in the main room at Birmingham’s Hare and Hounds that not only drew heavily on his new record, but also drew on his two EPs released prior to his breakthrough album.

The sound produced by the trio felt complete and adventurous

Given the intricacy of his songs’ production and the seemingly minimal stage setup, the sound produced by the trio felt complete and adventurous, bringing new aspects to his production. In particular, the hybrid of electronic and acoustic sounds in the drums allowed the live show to feel both faithful to the spirit of the original tracks but imbue them with a new energy in the live setting. Tracks like ‘Dreaming is Dead Now’ felt supported by the drummer’s semi-electronic beat, fully realising Skinny Pelembe’s electronic influences in the live setting.

Further showcasing the new life tracks from Dreaming is Dead Now gained in the live setting, the performance of album standout ‘Spit / Swallow’ demonstrated a new way of hearing the track’s blend of catchy guitar riffs and hip-hop inspired beats. By paring down some of the elements of production in the recorded version, the strength of the lyrics and fundamental elements of the song became clearer, especially in the slowed down live introduction.

His ability to express emotion and intensity though his vocals is almost unparalleled

Perhaps the most inescapable feature of Skinny Pelembe’s live show however is his voice. Moving between soft croons, guttural cries and a whole host of other styles, his ability to express emotion and intensity through his vocals is almost unparalleled.  In particular, the vocal performance in ‘My Love is Burning, Down’ was nothing short of amazing. The opening lines to the song were delivered a few steps back from the microphone with incredible force, adding an emotional gut-punch to the song’s hypnotic beat. This willingness to take elements of his studio production and adapt them to play to the strengths of his voice and the live instrumentation

Nobody else sounds like Skinny Pelembe at the moment, and his Hare and Hounds show only served to further demonstrate his unique musical vision. Impossible to pin down and constantly exciting, this set helped solidify him as one of the most exciting new voices in British music. I can’t wait to see where his music goes next.