In 2009, folk pop duo Charles Watson and Rebecca Taylor burst onto the Sheffield scene with carnivalesque cheers. Their debut, Yeah, So, carried us (and still does) through downer days with their childlike innocence in their tales of floorboard mice and pinky promises to marry each other if other suitors never showed. Yeah, So, tugged at our nubby heartstrings with upbeat pop tempos beneath Waston and Taylor’s unison vocals. Two albums and five years later, Slow Club has grown up and has taken a dip into the world of soul. Lyrics from “Our Most Brilliant Friends” off of Yeah, So, have never rung truer. The pair released Complete Surrender earlier this year with a whole new version of themselves. The only help they needed was from producer Colin Elliot (The Pretenders, Kylie Minogue). Look at them go.
I last saw Slow Club at TT’s in 2012. I remember my cheeks hurting from smiling so much as I watched Taylor pound away on bass drums, a tambourine, and even a wooden chair. The pair was just as spunky and sweet as I could have hoped. Since then Slow Club still records as a duo but now performs as a four-piece. On Complete Surrender, a more serious and solemn side of Slow Club has shown it’s face. Taylor has taken on a new stage persona, she’s bolder, fiercer, and unabashedly letting her voice ring out. Having a bigger personality almost made it hard to watch anyone else during Slow Club’s stop at Brighton Music Hall last week. The change is stark and it seems that the carnival days are over. C’est la vie.
As you know, Allston Pudding is all about the locals. We’re pretty well versed in the Boston scene, but what’s happening across the pond? We figured locals know their scene best so we asked Slow Club and opener Nick Mulvey to give us the insider’s look. They so generously highlighted some of their favorite English locals, take a listen below.
Charles Watson’s (Slow Club) Picks:
Nick Mulvey’s Picks: