Photo: Facebook / Beth Jeans Houghton
How do you persuade people to take your songs seriously when you barely seem to take yourself seriously? Some might pose this question to Newcastle's Beth Jeans Hougton, who arrives onstage in London like Gwen Stefani auditioning for a part as Cruella de Vil. And, surrounded by bandmembers masquerading as brightly-coloured woodland creatures (although drummer Dav Shiel describes his own getup as "camp samurai"), you suspect this balancing act to become tougher for Houghton as her star rises.
Tonight however, Beth and her Hooves keep the ship sailing pretty steadily, as a riotously confident run-through of tracks from her recent debut Yours Truly, Cellophane Nose prove. But while her sense of humour and incessant crowd interaction (featuring penis jokes and questions such as "Who believes in reincarnation?") will either irritate or endear audiences, the psychedelic folk-pop of 'Atlas' and 'Your Holes' are fortunately played a little more straight. Houghton, in a red suit with black polka dots and her bleach-blonde hair tied back, also complains of a sore throat, but her high voice both floats and hollers effortlessly over excellent new single 'Dodecahedron'.
With a new record apparently already mostly written, there are new songs galore, too. The best is 'Before I Go' - a short, sharp burst of country-pop that sounds far more rootsier than previous material - perhaps a product of the increasing time Houghton has spent in the US with boyfriend and Red Hot Chili Pepper, Anthony Kiedis.
Like his band, Houghton may need to tone down some of the wacky, purile jokes to grow beyond a cult act. But the band's infectious smiles after a handful of dancing fans spill onto the stage for closer 'Prick AKA Sean' suggest they are perfectly happy with their current lot. And, on tonight's evidence, why shouldn't they be?
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