Thurston Moore
London Islington Union Chapel
2nd December, 2011

The alcohol-free environs of the Union Chapel would’ve made faintly incongruous surroundings for the Thurston Moore of old. But this was 90 minutes devoid of mistreated Fender Jaguars, gusts of feedback or white-noise-heavy improvisational forays. Instead – as showcased on Demolished Thoughts – unconventionally-tuned acoustic guitar, harp and violin merged with introverted drums and candid lyrics to create rambling, pop-inclined tracks steeped in a palpable sense of yearning and fragility. It was a combination perfectly suited to the still-functioning church’s stunning interior and celestial acoustics. Wandering on stage, Moore and his eminently capable quartet of instrumentalists eased into serene new tracks Blood Never Lies and Mina Loy, before a tender Fri/End, from 2007’s Outside The Academy, dedicated to Viv Albertine. Hints of the experimental and atonal became more apparent as the night continued; Circulation flirted gently with discord, and Orchard Street culminated in an interminable tremolo-picked freak-out that felt self-indulgent, but was, nonetheless, rapturously received. Towards the end, Moore introduced older, spikier material from 1995’s Psychic Hearts, including Queen Bee And Her Pals and a (comparatively) raucous Patti Smith Math Scratch, neatly linking his noise-mongering past with a calmer, but just as compelling, present.