Daughter, tour review: Shoegazers at their dreamy best

Daughter aren't breaking new ground, but they showed they can do power as well as atmosphere during this entrancing gig, says David Smyth
Quiet power: Igor Haefeli of Daughter
Mike Lawrie/Getty Images
David Smyth29 January 2016

To a long list of bands with dreamy, shoegazing tendencies on the indie record label 4AD we can add Daughter, a multicultural trio based in London who are the latest to take the sound into big venues. The xx have proved that understated songs can sell impressively and win awards.

Guitarist Igor Haefeli, singer Elena Tonra and drummer Remi Aguilella don’t make foregrounded music, but have grabbed wider attention for their song Doing the Right Thing, which tackles issues of dementia. They asked for donations to an Alzheimer’s charity at the door. The song is affecting thanks to soft-voiced Tonra’s striking lyrics, most of which were unfortunately indecipherable compared to the relative polish of the band’s two albums.

With plucked guitar hushed down during Youth, it was possible to hear her peerlessly pessimistic take on young love: “Most of us are heaving through corrupted lungs, setting fire to our insides for fun”.

Their muffled drums, layers of guitar, with extra depth from a touring fourth member, and Tonra’s hushed swoon, were pretty while rarely standing tall enough to demand total attention. Fossa, with its eventual doubling of pace, showed that they can do power as well as atmosphere. Daughter aren’t breaking new ground, they’re part of a long line of languid mopers — a style that, done this well, continues to entrance.

Latest music reviews

1/168

Follow Going Out on Facebook and on Twitter @ESgoingout

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in

MORE ABOUT