I have to admit when asked if I wanted to cover tonight’s She Drew The Gun gig, I did think it would be a full band show – my fault for not checking! It was not the stripped back music and poetry gig that it turned out to be.
I’ve been a long time fan of the band, having seen them last February at Chalk (Read the review HERE) and at last years Great Escape when they played a surprise show at Shipwrights Yard.
However, this evening, as it turns out, I was pleasantly surprised how great music and poetry turned out to be!
This was very much a laid back evening of acoustic music with a few poems thrown in for good measure and there was even an interval!. The stage was set up to look like someone’s lounge, in fact slightly modelled on the Roach family home as we were told. A lit standard lamp and two stools were the only things on the stage, giving the Komedia a lovely warm feeling on a cold March evening.
Louisa Roach (aka She Drew The Gun) strolled on stage at 8:30 pm as ‘Crazy’ by Patsy Cline played out over the PA. As we found out later, this being one of her inspirations and favourite singers. Anna Donnigan on bass guitar and occasional keyboards joined her onstage for most of the set, in between times she was running the merch table. The Komedia tonight was all seated which also gave the gig a very relaxed feel.
Being a stripped back show, it was great to hear what a wonderful singer Louisa actually is, which is something I had sadly overlooked in the past when I have seen the full band live. Playing She Drew The Gun songs on just an acoustic guitar with some bass and keyboards gave her songs a completely different sound.
The eleven songs and six poems performed tonight were over in a flash. The between-song banter was also very funny at times. My three favourite songs ‘Resister’, ’Origin Song’ and ‘Behave Myself’ were all played and sounded amazing on just an acoustic and bass guitar.
Louisa also read out a very funny poem written by her mum about how she managed to get a council grant for some much needed house repairs by sending the poem into the local council. It was also very touching and as she read it out you could hear the emotion in her voice.
The gig finished at 10pm on the dot and it turned out to be a truly compelling show that was way different from the usual indie band gigs I attend.
We endeavoured to find out about tonight’s setlist, but understand it was the same or very similar to the 21st February performance in York, so we have adapted that one.
She Drew The Gun setlist:
Set 1:
‘Where I End And You Begin’ (from 2016 ‘Memories Of The Future’ album)
Poem #1 (Talked about anxiety and ended with a line about putting your phone down and going outside)
‘Time Machine’ (from 2013 ‘Chains’ EP)
‘Diamonds In Our Eyes’ (from 2021 ‘Behave Myself’ album)
‘Wolf & Bird’ (from 2018 ‘Revolution Of Mind’ album)
‘Since You Were Not Mine’ (from 2016 ‘Memories Of The Future’ album)
Poem #2 (Written about Louisa’s Nan)
‘Between Stars’ (from 2018 ‘Revolution Of Mind’ album)
‘Origin Song’ (from 2021 ‘Behave Myself’ album)
Set 2:
‘Trouble Every Day’ (The Mothers of Invention cover)
Poem #3 (Howl by Allen Ginsberg)
Poem #4 (Written by Louisa’s Mum to the local council in her efforts to obtain a grant for housing repairs)
‘Something For The Pain’ (from 2018 ‘Revolution Of Mind’ album)
‘Resister’ (from 2018 ‘Revolution Of Mind’ album)
‘Behave Myself’(from 2021 ‘Behave Myself’ album)
‘Thank You’
Poem #5 (Written about gratitude)
‘Poem’ (2016 single)
Support tonight came from London based poet Kofi Achina, who I also really enjoyed.
Kofi is a London bred spoken word artist, storyteller and slam finalist. Inspired by the likes of Kae Tempest, Kendrick Lamar and Little Simz, he weaves together comedy and tragedy, cold rhymes and storylines, to give a voice to his random thoughts and 3am musings. He’s featured at venues across London and Brighton speaking on a variety of topics ranging from work culture and consumerism to sunsets and hangovers, with his physical presence as punctuation to his performance.
Tonight, he read out six of his poems. How he remembers all the words is beyond me. Topics including furlough, his Ghanaian heritage and being a student at Brighton University were all covered during his half hour set, and if he plays in Brighton again he is really worth checking out.
