Courtyard KAchink @ Anteros

Following Ben is his wife Emily Winng, with additional electric, bass and acoustic guitars and keys from her band. Usually Ben would be on drums but it’s clearly not a wise move to drum with an arm in plaster. Dressed in a floral dress and felt hat, Emily is, as always, an absolute powerhouse. Her voice is strong and forceful, singing songs of heartbreak and love with passion and determination. Musically it’s a lovely warm full all-encompassing sound with hints of Hawaiian  vibes and Country sounds at times. We get delicate ballads with tender vocal harmonies from the band, and we get the fierce, full on The Secret, played faster than usual. This is one of the strengths of Emily’s performance – her ability to honestly ‘become’ the character in each song. She really comes into her own when she starts drumming herself, pounding away with a fixed strong glare into the middle distance. Always worth watching, she definitely doesn’t let us down on this occasion.

Pete is Birds Of Hell, and he’s joined by a band tonight to create a full and complex performance. I’ve seen him perform solo before, and it was equally intriguing. Pete’s clearly spent years happily working on his music on his own, which has led not only to magnificently personal songs but also the ability to stick at it until he can find a way to create each tiny element that makes up his music. His music is like the box you keep under your bed, filled with nostalgic, sometimes painful, sometimes funny, sometimes lovely special items and trinkets that you can never bring yourself to throw away. He cares – you can see it in his face and in the manner in which he wants every song to be perfect. Pete’s on guitar most of the set, and alongside him are various musicians (some from Emily’s band) that seem confident and comfortable. The set begins with his latest single Astronomy Programmes. Pete’s voice is, as always, just incredible. Seductively warm, bitingly vicious, achingly tender – he has it all.  Hearing him in a courtyard, outside, in Norwich, makes this experience even more special. I want to climb inside that voice. And lyrically he is constantly intriguing; Spiderman’s Let Himself Go is hilarious and tragic by turns, and could have been written by Alan Bennett such is the expertise with which he paints characters and scenes. Flexible Hours is a jerky spoken word post punk number like a much better Blur circa Great Escape. Two Brothers is both feisty and sad, with the addition of bells ringing out from his ‘magic shoe’. The tearjerker that is Hometown Rage always reminds me of Fionn Regan, with its simple melody, beautiful vocal harmonies and the grand finale of the sample of his grandmother's recorded voice singing along with him. Our Beautiful Boys is dedicated to Nick Cave, and, accompanied only by gentle keys, Pete’s voice breaks a bit during this song. No wonder; a song for Nick Cave, whose son died in tragic circumstances not long ago? And Pete a father himself? It’s only natural. His empathy, affection and affinity for Nick is clear and real. He wipes a tear from his eye as he finishes. Practice Punching My Hands, Son is a threatening, furious and yet muted song about his son dealing with troublesome classmates. The fury rises throughout but it’s also interlaid with moments of thoughtful pauses and the sounds of kids playing. Pete’s skills as a serious musician combined with his vulnerability and heart on sleeve lyrics make him one of Norwich’s very best artists, and he properly demonstrated that tonight.

Roll on the next Courtyard KAchink. What a lovely night and a reminder, as if we didn’t already know, that Norwich music is something to be beamingly proud of. Such intelligent, accomplished music made by such nice folk, with a bonus of some clever, witty poetry, and all for £3. Unbelieveable.