THE TRIPLE TREE and THE TRIO NOIR

Saturday 4th December 2004
Théatre du Bourg Neuf
Avignon



A bleak, wind-blown, cold winter night in the city of the Popes... it's hard to think of a more fitting atmosphere to see Tony Wakeford in concert. Four long years have passed since he last played in the south of France (or elsewhere in the country either) and this double performance in the Théatre du Bourg Neuf was a rare treat, not to be missed.

If only thirty or forty hardy souls had attended the previous evening's performances, for this night the small venue was almost full when my companions and I settled down in our seats.

The evening began with the première of Tony's new audio-visual project; The Triple Tree 'The Ghosts of England'. A collage of old English films inspired by the ghost stories of M.R. James were projected on a screen while Tony, Renee and Eric played a weird experimental soundtrack with the help of a laptop, a miniature bass, a violin, a glockenspiel and various wind instruments.

The night before, I had only seen the last ten minutes of the film and I had not been able to appreciate the performance, but tonight I was taken in by what I saw and heard. The superposition of images from different sources told an intriguing, mysterious story enhanced by the menacing atmosphere created by the tortuous repetitive music, which added a dynamic tension to the proceedings. The projection lasted somewhere between thirty or forty minutes and for a die-hard Sol Invictus fan like me was a pleasant aperitif before the Trio Noir.

A short interval followed which gave the audience time to quickly browse the record stall set up in the minuscule foyer and to share their impressions of the projection in the street in front of the theatre as, unfortunately there was no bar on the premises.

I got back to my seat as the Trio Noir arrived on stage. For those unfamiliar with the concept a duo/trio/quartet Noir consists in Tony Wakeford accompanied by a various number of musicians, playing stripped down or rearranged versions of Sol Invictus classics.

I had a few apprehensions for this concert as the night before the trio had sped through a short set due to Tony suffering from a sore throat. But one has to believe that pastis has wonderful curative virtues on the vocal cords as this night the trio, lead by an unusually cheerful and talkative Tony, played a much longer set. Although the track list was more or less the same as the previous night, the trio took their time to play the songs as they should be played and a few titles from the forthcoming Sol Invictus album were also thrown in for good measure.

Tony's familiar guitar style and Renee's solid and attentive violin playing formed the backbone for songs that were superbly enlightened by Eric's subtle contributions on glockenspiel, flute and a trumpet played through sound effects. It is always interesting to listen to one's old favourites played differently and I was enchanted to hear 'Abattoirs of Love', Believe Me', 'Killing Tide' and 'English Garden' played in this manner.

If the audience within the theatre was small, their enthusiasm more than made up for numbers and it was under rapturous applause that the trio reappeared on stage for an encore of 'Black Easter' and 'Sheath and Knife'. No doubt touched by the warm reception of the audience, the trio came back on stage again to play a second encore; an unrehearsed 'In A Garden Green' as a special request for a group of faithful old fans. A nice gift in this festive season...

Ian C.
Winter 2004/05

Tracklists:

* Friday 03/12/04

We are the Dead Men
Abattoirs of Love
Media
Fields
Believe Me
The Widow
Killing Tide
English Garden

Angels Fall
Black Easter

* Saturday 04/12/04

We are the Dead Men
New song
New song
Abattoirs of Love
Media
Fields
Believe Me
The Widow
Killing Tide
English Garden
Angels Fall

Black Easter
Sheath and Knife

In a Garden Green