Desperate Journalist, She Makes War & Projector at The Garage 5-4-19

Desperate Journalist pulled together a strong line up for this show at London's The Garage, a venue in the heart of the Highbury area. In support were fellow Londoner(s) She Makes War (aka Laura Kidd and her band), and Brighton's upcoming and hotly tipped trio, Projector. The main reason for the author's attendance

Projector were up first in what was their first proper show of the year. They came on stage and promptly began with a track both unreleased and not played live before - a sign of the confidence this band has in their new material. Both guitarist Ed and bassist Lucy perform lead vocals in the band, depending on who is the main composer behind the song but this time it was the latter who sung the opening 2 numbers. The aforementioned new track and the familiar Full Circle - previously named Death March. It was a strong and impressive opening. The band sounding more confident and powerful than ever before. Unfortunately, right at the climax of the guitar break in Full Circle there was suddenly silence from the guitar's amp. Lucy and drummer Demelza continued on without breaking stride and finished the track.
After a momentary break things appeared to be corrected and the band played earlier singles I Am Shamed and Break Your Own Heart to an ever swelling audience who received the band well. However, as soon as they launched into another new track - JG Ballard -  the gremlins struck again, Ed laying his guitar down as the 2 vocalists sang in unison over only  a bass and drum backing. Strangely it still worked somehow but wasn't how the band wanted it go and with their frustration becoming more evident by the minute they elected to cut short their set.

They were followed by She Makes War whose performance suffered no such difficulties and the highly acclaimed singer and her band showcased a solid set that appeared to go down well with the crowd.  Her brand of alternative/indie rock acted as a perfect warm up for the headline act.

Desperate Journalist took to the stage around 9pm with the crowd now filling a not quite sold out venue. The post-punk act whose sound is clearly influenced by The Cure (just look at the name) and similar early 80s fare, are fronted by Jo Bevan. Jo's voice is pitched somewhere between those of All About Eve's Julianne Regan and Sleeper's Louise Wener, moving as it does between silky smooth and the occasional hint of rasping. The band's bass driven tracks often feature Rob Hardy's spider-like guitar lines and licks across the top. The result is an engaging brand of post-punk/indie that has strong melodies and hooks with an attention grabbing singer. I approached them with a 'wouldn't mind checking them out' attitude and left with nothing but a positive impression.