Hamish Hawk, Fringe by the Sea review: 'a lyrical genius'
This was a winning set from Edinburgh’s idiosyncratic lyricist, writes Olaf Furniss
Hamish Hawk, Big Top, North Berwick ★★★★
While the hordes flocked to Murrayfield, North Berwick played host to Hamish Hawk, with solid support from Cloth and Billy Nomates. Congregating in a big tent, the audience included parents with children, locals on a night out, the drummer of anarcho-punk band Oi Polloi and even a member of an Oasis tribute band, fresh from performing in the fan zone.
This highlights an appeal beyond the “6 Music Dads”, introduced to Hamish Hawk when the radio station began championing the Edinburgh-based artist on the back of the 2021 album, Heavy Elevator.
That groundbreaking LP established him as a lyrical genius, with an idiosyncratic, humorous style reminiscent of Jarvis Cocker. However, for this show he began with the more reflective Juliet As Epithet from the darker, more personal A Firmer Hand, released last year.
Three songs into the set he greeted the audience, with the customary “I’m Hamish Hawk. We are Hamish Hawk,” an acknowledgment of the musicians who have accompanied his journey. The exception is recent addition Lizzie Reid, who provides an extra vocal dimension and a captivating bass sound, reminiscent Simple Minds. Hawk’s performance also gave a nod to the era, with the commanding, theatrical style favoured by many of the eighties’ best pop acts.
Alas, his expressions were only properly visible on the screens because the over-the-top lighting design frequently blasted beams directly into the audience, at one point reaching the type of whitey-inducing levels of Berlin’s nosebleed-techno mecca, Tresor.
However, while this did undermine the show, a move to the side of the tent turned out to be a retina-saving solution, and came with the added bonus of seeing two women in their early twenties playing air-racket as they danced to the wonderful single The Mauritian Badminton Doubles Champion, 1973. The band encored with a rousing Bakerloo, Unbecoming, thereby completing the night’s winning set.
READ MORE: Oasis, Edinburgh review: 'cathartic'
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.