**A TeamAvsTeamB live review written by Kunal Singhal, founder and promoter at Chaos Theory after our gig for them in April 2012**
Speaking to the members of TeamAvsTeamB, you might expect their music to echo their nature; softly spoken, gentle folk. I thought that perhaps they were shy but eager young musicians, trying to make a name for themselves. I was only half right.
As soon as the Manchester-based band hit the stage at Candied Nonsense in April, their demeanour did not change, but only became clearer. They weren't just quiet people, they were quietly confident.
They exploded into their set with That First Love, instantly capturing everyone's attention with David Curington's furious oboe work, upbeat guitar from Steven Jackson and funky basslines by Chris Prior. Suddenly I saw this band of incredibly accomplished musicians and saw how calm and confident they were on stage.
TeamAvsTeamB performed a wonderfully lively set overall, but most of their music was offset by hints of wistfulness and melancholy, most apparent in their song Slowly Let Down The World. Their lyrics are clearly well thought out and and obviously come from the heart. To watch these performers on stage, you can see the energetic celebration of life through their music and the intensity that they devote to their individual parts and to each other. Seeing them was a joyous experience, not that I had much a of a choice to feel anything else.
On stage, the musicians that make up this entourage steal complete focus. This might seem like a strange thing to say, as you'd expect any band on stage to do that. However, there's a discernible difference between a band taking to the stage, with people continuing to murmur in hushed tones, and a band taking to the stage with the entire audience stopping mid sentence with their mouths open. It is safe to say that TeamAvsTeamB take complete control of the room and everyone in it.
Their strong musical backgrounds were also apparent in the way they interacted with each other. With each member remaining mindful of the others throughout their sets, they needed nothing more than a glance to understand each other. The soulful, evocative and passionate nature of their songs were completely offset by their dominance of the stage and the room of people in front of them.
It is rare to see an indie folk band pull off this level of sleek professionalism. TeamAvsTeamB are a tight, well-oiled machine as a band. As artists, they are passionate, evocative and innovative. I have never before or since seen a band that quite does what they do, which is why I will continue to go and see them perform.
Kunal Singhal – Chaos Theory
