God Is An Astronaut live in London 2022

God Is An Astronaut is an Irish Post-Rock band from County Wicklow, formed in 2022 by Niels and Torsten Kinsella. And for those who don’t know them they have explored the boundaries of introspective, emotive, guitar lead music, with influence from electronic music and they sit high at the top of their genre. So, therefore their style employs elements of electronic music, krautrock and space rock reminiscent of bands such as Pink Floyd mixed with the heavy layers of Mono. They are known for their beautiful, heavily layered melodies, ambient vocals and dynamic songs, as well as their extensive use of lights and visuals for their live shows. The Irish quartet have long been one of the Europe’s best in the world of instrumental rock and post-rock.

Back in the day, they created their own record label, Revive Records, in order to release their first record “The End of the Beginning” (2002) and so far they released ten albums with “Ghost Tapes #10” being their latest one and release in 2021, via Napalm Records. As predicted, it did not failed the expectations that the fans had about it.

The 10 year progression from “All is Violent” to “Ghosh Tapes #10” is evident and monumental and demonstrate a solidification in tone and concept of their sound. The overall sound of the band has not changed dramatically since the beginning, through their work on their first album felt more electronic than their later works. However their brand of sprawling and spacey melodies was already well placed at that time.

To open the night we have one of two members of VLMV, Peter Lambrou. VLMV is an ambient-ish post-something band, as they self-proclaimed, that formed in 2015 and since then changed their name from ALMA (though their new name is still pronounced the same). Since then, they have regrouped and returned with a fresh perspective and unique blend of talent. VLMV brings to their performances a slow build cinematic soundscape alongside something very unique, atmospheric and intimate. A very interesting choice in terms of opening act, but I think it worked.

I must say that I was very surprised to be the only photographer during the all night, but an empty pit is something worthwhile experiencing once in a lifetime. You definitely have all the attentions from the artists!

After a quick break, God Is An Astronaut is ready to hit the stage. The room is full of people that are waiting with impatience for them to start playing. They open with “Adrift” and for the first two third of the song there is an unease feeling in the atmosphere, with the distortion and sound effects use at their maximum. It then become much quieter to then builds up again before quietly fading out. An incredible opener in my opinion!

Following with “Spectres” performed whit much more pathos and energy than on record. The setlist proceed and with 5 songs out of 7 of the new album, the crowd keeps wanting more. The air of the room is mixed with a soothing yet mysterious sound that concludes with bombastic overdriven noise. Most of the songs are been played with so much energy and aggression than on record and I think it’s palpable that the guys could not wait any longer to be back on a stage!

During the all performance I have to take a moment and admire Jamie Dean’s flawless and fast switch between keyboard and the guitar; he makes it look like it is the easiest thing to do! Not considering also all the pedal boards that Torsten Kinsella has that really comes in handy for playing songs such as “Dust and Echoes”, where a hypnotizing and repetitive lead line catches up with the rest of the band. Accompanied to all of this, Torsten also provides incredible vocal intonations filling the gaps left by the instruments.

Moving on with “Burial” which features some subtle but excellent drumming from Lloyd Hanney that creates an almost hypnotic effect. Yet another track that build and build before cooling off and do it all over again. There are so many great tracks been played tonight that it’s hard to decide which one is the best, but “Fade” is perhaps one to pick from the bunch. It is a much more fast paced that the rest of the album and matches the atmosphere of the room perfectly.

The band disappears for few moment and we all know that this meant that it’s “encore time” and then we need to say goodbye to them. They decide to close the night with “Route 666” from their first album “The End of the Beginning” and goes way beyond the classical end to a gig, but instead become angrier and blunter! Perfect way to end the night!

It was an absolute great night and if feels like God Is An Astronaut have not reached their limit yet. This band is highly recommended to all the fans of instrumental rock & post-rock music.

Setlist: