David Kitt vs the shushers
On Saturday I went along to see David Kitt in the Empire in Belfast. I 'm not sure how I had managed to go so long without encountering this guy but I was pretty impressed with his performance, in particular the way he tends to charm the crowd. He played two sets, everything from acoustic material with some backing beats to full band work-outs. I think I prefer the low-key stuff as the final improv-style piece came across as a bit of a poor man's Sonic Youth.
Overall though he has some very strong songs and most of 'the Big Romance' was played, as well as a ton of new material.
The thing that struck me as odd was the audience. The venue was absolutely packed, it cost £12.50 to get in and everyone seemed to be very into the music. With a large crowd like that you do expect a bit of chatter, none of it seemed to distract David Kitt, and in fact at times during the acoustic songs the venue was very quiet. However, just beside us were a gang of aggressive shushers who were on the offensive the minute anyone spoke during a song. I am very against talking during quiet gigs but I thought the constant shushing was actually more annoying at this show.