The Kills
London Brixton Academy
3rd December, 2011

By nature and necessity, The Kills tend towards sonic minimalism. Rather than a hindrance, though, limited constituent parts have helped Jamie Hince and Allison Mosshart hone a unique, raw electro-blues. But as their upward trajectory continues – spurred on by acclaimed recent LP, Blood Pressures – bigger venues threaten to swamp the duo’s stripped-down appeal. Fortunately, reinforcements were enlisted for their biggest London show so far. After slipping on to a leopard-print-backed stage and into slow burner, No Wow, the duo were joined by four bandana-masked drummers, who provided extra clout and welcome rhythmic variation. The surprise appearance of a gospel choir for part of the set boosted the personnel count further, and added sombre layers of texture to tracks like Satellite. Not that the Transatlantic twosome needed much help. The newly red-tressed Mosshart paraded around singing, screaming and moaning with an energy not often audible on record, while Hince’s understated vocal – coupled with riff after filthy riff wrestled from his mistreated guitar – supplied the perfect counterpoint. UR A Fever, Tape Song and Future Starts Slow were predictably excellent, while an intimate but faintly ill-advised cover of Patsy Cline’s Crazy didn’t fare as well. The five-song encore, which included The Velvet Underground’s Pale Blue Eyes, wound down a grand send-off for their most successful year yet.