Three years on from her love-at-first-sight performances during a Bon Iver support slot, it would seem that, finally, the time is right for Beth Jeans Houghton’s undoubted talent to shine.
But where once was a wispy folk singer, tonight – at a mercifully air-conditioned Deaf Institute on a balmy October evening – BJH is confident, assured and bursting with triumphant, ballsy songs laced with mischief.
Support is provided by Liverpool’s Stealing Sheep. They exude bags of charm, and their deft lo-fi folk is complimented by the magnificence of the duo’s maxi-dresses.
When BJH takes the stage, it is immediately apparent her career has arrived at a significant juncture. Gone are her wigs of yore (she’s rocking a man-size Star Trek t-shirt and beetle crushers look tonight) and her Hooves of Destiny band are now a serious(ly good) unit and not merely a jokey skiffle band.
Recently signed to Mute and with her far-to-long-awaited debut album (the bafflingly-christened, ‘Yours Truly, Cellophane Noise’) finally out in January, Beth is quickly up to speed, nailing the geometric beauty of ‘Dodecahedron’ before a hastily-remembered trumpet is sourced for a tingling, galloping version of new single ‘Liliputt’.
What’s most impressive about tonight is the airing of new tracks which may adorn the album. ‘Shampoo’ switches from a 1950’s swing beat into a flash of punk, while the self-explanatory ‘You Let Me Down’ is a tense slab of simmering rock. All memories of her folky strumming are jettisoned into history and any hint of wispiness has been snuffed out.
Houghton, thankfully, has not lost her sense of fun. The crowd is invited to enter a ‘make yourself burp’ competition, which the singer duly judges herself victorious after a gargantuan display of gastric bad manners. She then organises an audience dance-off before shedding her guitar and launching into a fabulously kitsch version of Madge’s ‘Like A Prayer’. Post show, as she happily signs autographs behind her artful merch stall, it is hard not to come to the conclusion that 2012 will be Beth Jean Houghton’s year.
Words by John Freeman
