Light is one of the life's great metaphors. It punctuates a bleak outlook and offers a beacon of hope. It also leads the way of escape on a road to recovery. If before light is darkness, then a post more positive state is the after light. Put these two words together and you get the new artistic moniker of Thea Gilmore as she turns the corner with in effect a new beginning. Afterlight - the artist and the album - is set to be one of the most profound and strongest album releases of 2021 and folks around the country have been having the most striking of previews attending shows on what has been described as a mid-pandemic tour. The transition from Thea Gilmore to Afterlight is brave from a commercial standpoint, but nowhere near as that of the seismic movement depicted in its theme. This evening the tentative steps of a new journey trod the boards of the Midland Arts Centre in Birmingham and it would have been an act of stoical defiance to leave without a slither of movement from a performance raw, honest, stunning and tapping into the attributes of a long established talent.
Flashback to May 2019 and Thea Gilmore brought the tour supporting her most recent album SMALL WORLD TURNING to nearby Bromgrove and the now mothballed Artrix. A full band set up paved the way for a polished and plush performance to affirm a reputation stemmed from 20 years of productive output. Spring forward two and a half years and now you just have one artist, one piano, two guitars, a loop and an individual at peace with themselves.
At the time of this show, the world is still a week away from the album seeing the light of day but the gist more than lightly floated from stage to audience. You could even see how the opening and closing songs were sitting on a plate begging for those positions, both on the album and the set list. The degree that 'Of All the Violence I Have Known' and 'Last' are poetic epics adding to the aura generated from their recitals is a stark reminder that Gilmore is the ace lyricist and a champion of mixing literary excellence with a minimalist backdrop.
To set the scene for this show and a few others on the tour, northern poet Steven Langstaff was invited to share his very contemporary work with the audience to act more than a mere warm up. Thirty minutes flew by as his work ranged from reluctant GCSE students to a Wembley winner. A little niche in places, but delivered in a pacy vivacious style that both held your attention and prompted a state of alertness.
Little introduction was needed for the first Thea Gilmore / Afterlight song. You don't have to search hard for the full narrative. It's candid, in the lyrics and open for the curious should you wish to seek. More importantly it has sparked a creative explosion to burn brightly from what is already a steeply mounted base. For the next seventy five minutes of the pre-encore set, AFTERLIGHT the album got centre stage though a fleeting flag was still raised for snippets from a back catalogue, mainly the aforementioned 2019 album and THE COUNTERWEIGHT from 2017.
There were moments when things veered away from original words. Peter Gabriel's 'The Book of Love' is an unashamed Thea Gilmore favourite, 'Bad Moon Rising' has a previously recorded version now added to a Zombie soundtrack and there was more than a hint of irony with the whole curtain being brought down to 'Cabaret'. All three signed, stamped and sealed with a wistful Thea Gilmore mark.
Instrumentally, Gilmore majored on acoustic guitar, glided over to piano on several occasions and proved a little tease by only picking up the sparkling "electric beast" once. Part frustratingly-part wonderful, the latter sounded gorgeous on a new song 'Vespering'. More electric next time from a grateful and insatiable fan. From a long time loop sceptic, it has to be said that this electronic art form was executed to maximum effect and a welcome addition.
In addition to the three new songs mentioned, we learned that '26 Letters' was perceived the most folky, 'Stain' is a personal Gilmore favourite, 'Parallax' had a different source of inspiration and, well, 'Cut and Run' is what it says on the tin. From the stack of old stuff not forgotten, 'Rise' had a pre-song applause and many old time fans smiled at a resurrection of the 2001 song 'This Girl is Taking Bets'.
Personally, Gilmore confessed to a performing vulnerability that quickly evaporated. Ten solo shows after twenty years of band activity is the steepest of learning curves. Her voice mixes a quirky Englishness within an immaculate structure. The playing is subtle, minimalist and the perfect backdrop to the songs she wants her audience to listen to. The exterior is warm and grateful of being afforded a chance to move in a new direction. First and foremost, there is a bursting pride in a new record that sprinkled a renewed optimism around the room.
Afterlight / Thea Gilmore will need a period of audience readjustment. Patience on all parts is a virtue. Stick in there and rewards will ensue. This evening was the most perfect of promotions to put a commercial slant on it. Moving away from the cold to the cathartic, sitting and listening intently to a sublime performance was a blessing. 2021 will be a gig year with a small sample. In contrast shows like Thea Gilmore / Afterlight put on tonight in the MAC would soar to the top in any gig year. Enough said, let's sit and wait for the birth of AFTERLIGHT on October 15th.