Arielle

I fully admit that I wasn’t too familiar with Arielle’s music before seeing her live at the Water Rats on Friday night but she did enough in an hour to impress and she had a great response from a very enthusiastic crowd.

Arielle is petite and at first I thought I was hearing a folk singer, almost wondering why she needed the bass player (Olivia Thompson) and drums (Robert Purkiss) as her high voice and soft guitar kicked the set off with ‘Genies’ but as the set developed the music got stronger and, while they never got stupidloud, they kicked on and played a tight set with a lot of Prog leanings and no shortage of excellent guitar playing.
I really liked the title track of her latest album ‘Suspension/Dimension’ – very Yes like – and an untitled track that she closed with that built and ebbed, really stretching the whole three-piece and killing the set on a crescendo.

Her main weapon is the guitar she calls ‘Twotone’ which she built herself and which will be released to the general public under Brian May’s label next year.

She is an avowed fan of sixties and seventies music and you really can hear some of her influences in the jangling guitar lines but she also has a freshness about her that is both impressive and endearing.

A really pleasant surprise and a great introduction to a young lady who stands a great chance of stamping her place in music, especially in the UK where I think her music will only gain more traction with more exposure.
If you get the chance see Arielle, she’s really good.

Picture by Peter Noble