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Night & Day Café, Manchester - I’ve said it before, but Support acts can be a mixed bag, some you win and some you don’t, but sometimes you can really strike it lucky, which was the case last September when Robert Jon and The Wreck rolled into Nottingham, bringing Caitlin Krisco and The Broadcast with them. It was an inspired choice as they went down an absolute storm.
Krisco and the boys enjoyed themselves so much that they promised to come back in the New Year and bring a new EP with them for good measure. Something for us to look forward to. The UK left a big effect on Caitlin herself as she remarked “There is a vibrancy and enthusiasm to UK audiences that is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced on tour. The fans there have completely stolen my heart, and I am genuinely overflowing with gratitude for the dream opportunity to return this fall for our album release tour!”
So, twelve months later and Krisko being true to her word, they appear back on our shores for an eight-date tour, which tonight arrives in Manchester, after shows in Southampton, Faversham and Newcastle. From here they’ll head to Coulsdon, Nottingham, London and Bristol.
Tonight’s venue is a new one on me. We’re at the Night and Day Cafe, a dinky little venue, bang in the middle in the Northern Quarter with a good vibe about it, so things look promising, which is good because in true Manchester style, it’s pouring it down with rain outside. Autumn has arrived.
There was no mention of a Support, but were pleasantly surprised when Ruby J duly appeared on stage, accompanied by Saxon - one dude with a guitar, not the metal band from the 80’s. Now that would’ve been a surprise !
Ruby J - She opens with ‘Naturally’, followed by ‘Shout’ and a good bit of banter in between. She has lots of personality and comes across as very confident, certainly for an eighteen year old. She tells us that she has recently released her debut EP ‘Backtrack’ which we might like to look out for - but we’ll only get to hear one track from it tonight.
Song four is called ‘Shake’ which is “designed to cheer us up as everything has been melancholy until now and there’s a bit of a dance or shake that goes with the song” but, I think, she realised early on that we didn’t look like the crowd that might join in – and she could be right there - so she didn’t teach us the moves
‘Try’ is the next tune, which is the one off the EP. There’s a very relaxed vibe about Ruby J and she feels that it’s ok to tell us that “they’re very professional and have played many gigs and festivals but tonight, they prefer to wing it” - so they are doing. Now there’s honesty for you. No one is offended by this.
She finishes her thirty-minute set with a cover of the Gnarls Barkley tune ‘Crazy’, which is a good acoustic style version with her own mark stamped all over it.
A cheeky bit of Googling in the break tells me that she’s from Staffordshire - much like my good self then - and that she normally performs with a six-piece band including brass. This makes me sit up and pay attention and it might be worth looking out for them, for the experience soon enough. For the moment though, it’s a good and pleasant start to the evening.
Set List
1. Naturally
2. Shout
3. Caught
4. Shake
5. Try
6. This light
7. Caught
8. Crazy
Caitlin Krisko & The Broadcast - So, a year ago, a band I could immediately relate to, left me wanting to hear more. That chance came a couple of months ago, in August, when they released their new EP ‘Blueprints’ but two short months later, they're back in the UK and I get to hear them perform it live, along with a good few tunes from their back catalogue. It crossed my mind as I drove in though, how they were going to be feeling and if their heads would be elsewhere, as at the very time they were stepping on stage to entertain us, Storm Helene was wreaking havoc in their home town of Asheville, North Carolina - enough to distract anyone.
Nevertheless, at the allotted time, the foursome appeared on stage and immediately bowled us over with ‘Steamroller’. They were everything that I remembered from a year ago. Krisco has such huge appeal, welcoming and endearing as she brings you along for the ride from the outset. She’s accompanied by rich and melodic guitar solos from Aaron Austin and a solid back line, that’s there but not there, from William Seymour on bass and Michael W Davis on drums - don’t forget the ‘W’ !
We hear that tonight is a family affair as we’re joined by said bass players parents, who’d flown over for this particular gig. Caitlin’s father was “in the air, as we speak” she says and said guitarists parents had travelled over for the gig in Barcelona - which was a much better choice weather wise, as Manchester was showing its true colours tonight and doing what Manchester often does - rain !
Third song in was a cover of Aretha Franklins ‘Today I Sing the Blues’, which showed, for the first time tonight, Caitlin's emotional side, with her heart and soul pouring through the performance. From there, we get the first track from the EP, with the funky, groove laden ‘Devil on Your Side’, where Caitlin makes a play for all of our souls. It’s followed closely by ‘Hole in My Heart’ and ‘Piece of You’ which opens with a fabulous guitar riff and powers on through to the end. A great piece of blues rock and roll.
‘Can’t Find My Way’ and ‘Battle Cry’ are next, but it’s then that Krisco takes a moment, opens up, and confides in us, as to how bad a time she was having the last time she was in the UK. She had suddenly lost her mother a short time ago, she was the first of her cohort to lose a parent and she tells of the huge void that bereavement brings with it. ‘Have to Say Goodbye’ is a heart rendering ballad, dedicated to her mother, performed with such emotion that it leaves you with a serious lump in your throat afterwards. Krisco’s head must be running through everything memory she has of her mother when she sings it, and you wonder how she gets through it - but she does.
You also wonder where the band can go from here, as they’ve left us drained with emotion, but I guess they decided, when they drew up the setlist, that from there, the only way was up, so they go from one extreme to another with the hugely infectious ‘Operator’, a song that worms its way into your head and stays there, rent free, for days after - or is that just me? It’s a song that bounces along and demands audience participation, which Caitlin thrives off as it displays her affable personality all the more. It’s also a song that has me hearing a huge Hammond organ playing somewhere at the back. It’s not as if the song needs filling out, there’s plenty there, but I can’t help feeling that it’s still got a part to play and would round off the live version even more. Probably just me !
‘Haunted by You’ is another soulful, blues ballad with captivating vocals and it’s no wonder that it topped Spotify’s “Blues Ballads” playlist and it’s an excellent way to finish the night. Well, nearly…
There just be some kind of tradition where this band pays homage to British music at the ‘true’ end of their sets. The last time it was Led Zep’s ‘Rock and Roll’. This time they’ve gone for the Beatles ‘With a Little Help from My Friends’ - Joe Cocker style for an encore. A fine choice, if ever there was one, and a homage very well done.
This was only their second ever time in the UK, the first being with Robert Jon and the Wreck, but Caitlin promised that they would be coming back next year, for a third time and they’d be bringing a whole new album with them. We know that Caitlin keeps her promises and there were plenty of witnesses to hear her say it, so we really have something to look forward to - and with a bit of luck they’ll bring a keyboard player with them for some huge chunks of ‘Hammond’ throughout the set and for everyone to hear - not just me in my head ! !
Rolling Stone Magazine suggested that “Krisko is arguably one of the best kept vocal secrets of the Southeast with her band, The Broadcast”. On this showing, they’re not wrong. Krisco gives you everything you want from a Singer, passion, emotion and loads of personality, and The Broadcast are the perfect foil. Austin's guitar work sings its way through the riffs and solos and the Davis and Seymour backline provided all the funky grooves and solid beats that each song demanded. Perfect.
Setlist
Steamroller
Blue Heron
Today I Sing
Devil on Your Side
Hole In My Heart
Piece of You
Can't Find My Way
Battle Cry
Have To Say
Operator
Half Asleep
Haunted By You
With A Little Help from My Friends
Caitlin Krisko & The Broadcast are…
Caitlin Krisko - Lead Vocals
Aaron Austin - Guitar, BV’s
Michael W. Davis - Drums
William Seymour - Bass, BV’s
Written in association with Noble PR
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