There’s nothing more disappointing than turning up to a gig to find that the headlining band have cancelled due to illness, except when you decide to stay to check out the support acts and then wonder why you bothered.
To be honest The Webb Brothers had a lot to live up to; not only had OK Go called it quits, but they’re currently riding high on a bevy of good press. Their upcoming, self-titled third album has been described as their coming of age, but it looks like the offspring of songwriter Jimmy Webb still have to hone their live act.
While their opening detached melancholic dirge may be indicative of Edinburgh’s post-Festival feeling, this damp opening fails to capture the mood of the small crowd. Fortunately this isn’t the height of their set and the Brothers soon kick it up a gear to knock out a number of frenetic tracks, though never manage to fully engage the audience.
Regardless of how critically acclaimed their newest album is, The Webb Brothers lack any credible stage presence and their presentation is a little slapdash – vocals are muddy and incoherent and basically serve as punctuation between a series of self-indulgent instrumentals. Long guitar solos are all very well if you’re Hendrix, but when you’re no better or worse than the next musician they quickly become boring.
Essentially, The Webb Brothers suffer from the too-many-cooks syndrome. If they develop a stage focus, trim away the second guitarist/keyboardist and ditch the superfluous drum machine they might get somewhere, but at the moment just leave them on your stereo.
Richard Biggs
