| Sophia (Robin solo + string quartet) - Feb. 13 '09: L'Archiduc, Brussels (BE), with Dear Reader |
| Set
list Last night The sea Lost So slow Where are you now Swept back If only I left you Heartache Band Robin Proper-Sheppard: vocals, guitar Calina de la Mare: violin Fiona Brice: violin Robert Spriggs: viola Sarah Willson: cello Review Friday the thirteenth, so called day of black cats, ladders to be avoided and rabbit paws that need serious rubbing and kissing. None of all that: day of good music and seeing back old friends, that’s what it was. At the legendary Archiduc Jazz Bar in Brussels, Robin-Proper Sheppard led us into songs of frail and pristine beauty, backed up by a string quartet. Long gone are the heavy decibel days of The God Machine, but the intensity has never quite left the songs this man comes up with. I imagine, while listening to his lyrics, the turmoil sometimes going on in his head and feel my shoulders slump. He’s not a véry happy dude, song wise. I can’t quite figure out what this showcase was for, because the new material Sophia are putting out later this year was only barely touched. Instead, we did get naked and pristine renditions of old stuff. Goose bump moments : one or two. I therefore conclude this showcase to have been of excellence. Paul Lamont, lightfreezer.wordpress.com, 16.02.2009 Photos by Paul Lamont    Photos by Nathalie Derhé   Photos by Astrid Baudine   Photos by Vanessa Van den Broeck    |