LIVE REVIEW: FORTY ELEPHANT GANG - ELLA SPENCER - THE GREEN NOTE - CAMDEN TOWN

Finally, a chance for #TEAMw21 to see Forty Elephant Gang in the flesh, after heralding them over the last few years, to see if their live performance can match the wonder of their recorded releases.

Opening the evening, would be our initial sighting of Ella Spencer, who may have only have four released songs, yet pre show research showed that they each come brim full of ideas and an attention grabbing sound. With her curly blonde hair and ring through her upper lip, she was a striking figure who became ever more intriguing as the evening progressed.

Her first song "Warning Signs" gripped from the start and with a chorus that closed on the line

"Only hindsight sees the Warning Signs", it was clear that we were dealing with someone with a tight lyrical grip. With each take on the chorus getting audibly louder, until a final one that slowed and gradually faded away, Ella clearly has a degree of stagecraft in knowing how to present her work.

Her most recent single, ""Scotty's Tyres" followed, the chorus hit as vocal punches as Ella emphasised certain words at a greater volume. It was highly impressive, with a nice line of implied menace

""You're driving and I'm already in your rear view

Then I really want to slash your tyres

Set you car on fire

And that's something I still might still do!"!"

With a charming "Welcome" for a few latecomers having to do the Green Note walk of shame past the stage, Ella would move on to a new song recorded in Portland, home of the Decemberists which immediately earned Ella brownie points with us. With a more intricately picked guitar line, "Wishbone" came rich in lyrics and sung with a depth of feeling that made you want to immediately hear that recorded version.

Another new song "Howling Wolf", about lying to yourself, came with a tune that was delicately sung in the verses, before powerfully attacking the chorus - finishing her vocals a capella on the line "Now the wolf is at my door" before adding a final strum.

A switch to banjo would see out the set, and anyone that includes a Townes Van Zandt song in their set is always going to go down well with us, for it shows an impeccable taste. Ella's version of "Loretta" had a folky feel, the banjo playing being of the more gently picked style than hoedown mayhem.

A final song in a set that whizzed past was again on banjo, which seem to be a tricky beast to tune! A traditional American song "Fare Thee Well" would duly transport us back in time. Stopping for one section to be sung a capella once more before picking up the banjo line again to wish us "Fare Thee Well".

Displaying more than enough talent to show she will be a force going forward, Ella Spencer is undoubtedly one to watch.

The sizeable queue outside the Green Note, snaking down Parkway was a testament to the growing allure of the Forty Elephant Gang. Packed on to the notoriously tight Green Note stage, the original line up took the front row, while the newer arrivals on bass and drums took the rear.

Acknowledging the crowd with a quick "Cheers all", it was straight into the 2020 single "Songs Of Praise", initially just the sound of mandolin and acoustic guitars before the fuller band sound kicked in. The sound of three vocals on the chorus being exactly the sort of sound #TEAMw21 were hoping to hear.

It was quite a sight to behold with a posse of heads bouncing up and down on stage.

One of last year's excellent singles "Miss You", retained all the qualities that made it so enjoyable on its release, transmitting a good time soulful vibe. Another single, "Evergreen", was equally excellent, Andrew White's vocals perfectly matching the mood of the song and blending perfectly with the rest of the band on the chorus. To hear Sean Mannion's mandolin, the whole night was a delight, even if for most of it he seemed a little confined with his back against the wall, while James Bachmann's guitar work seemed ever inventive.

Seemingly truly touched by the size of the crowd and the warmth of their reception, Forty Elephant Gang seemed oblivious of the fact that it was the quality of their output that was being appreciated. The blend of different types of Americana matched to a most definitive London outlook and delivery, makes for something just that little bit different.

Returning to their original core components, the three would move on to "Light On Water", a more folky diversion in sound, equally rich and absorbing.

Clues as to which direction the Gang might be heading in, came with "Fever Dreams", a combination of weird fragments of dreams "Elvis playing guitar with the Gods", "King Arthur's Knights", "Marlon Brando eating Cookie Dough ice cream" stealing the attention lyric wise, while the sadder undercurrent seemingly slipped by unnoticed. It was a lot to absorb and #TEAMw21 look forward to hearing it properly. Another tune "1994" was full of delightful niche references of days past that are surely going to chime with others.

With the full complement on stage, "Hollow Man Blues" was a touch of rockabilly gospel and a definite change of pace, once again showing the power of the three vocals and drawing whoops of delight from the audience. An oldie "Joan Of Arc", lit up the faces of the long term FEG fans, with its pure pop chorus it was easy to see why they would find their voice.

Things would slow with "Please Say Goodbye", now even more of a country ballad, sounded ever more plaintive and resigned to eventual sadness.

The main reason for us all gathering was the release of "Dark Shadows", the excellent new single. James's arena filling guitar riff was kept well restrained although the extended outro did let both Sean and James work their respective magic and make some noise.

The single that that introduced us to Forty Elephant Gang, "Hard Times" was simply majestic, the combination of all their key elements coming together in one supreme five minutes, ending with a superb rocking finish.

A return to the stage for Ella Spencer would take us into a new area of the evening. The opening song of this section, a cover of the country classic "Almost Persuaded" was a mini masterpiece. Written by Billy Sherrill and Glen Sutton, this country ballad retained its lyrical tension some fifty years after its release. Andrew playing it totally straight was utterly believable while Ella as an old time country gal was equally perfect in the role of a wife pondering being unfaithful. This may have been a one off encore but deserves to be recorded properly - outstanding!

The mood was immediately lifted, with a buoyant run through of Sheryl Crow's "All I Want To Do", with Ella duly announcing the required "This ain't no disco!" over the initial guitar work. With Andrew taking over the vocals for the second verse, this turned into all round party groove.

One last cover in this impromptu "Crowd pleaser" cover section would see Forty Elephant Gang take on "The Chain", Andrew would say "They sense it" on hearing the audience's response to just the opening few notes.

The evening would end on one final return to the Forty Elephant Gang catalogue for "Hands Out Your Pocket"

By the time it finished, the Green Note would be a mass of stomping and clapping appreciating an evening of exceptional entertainment.