Poltergeist at Hoxton Bar and Kitchen

Echo & the Bunnymen guitarist Will Sergeant has created new musical project Poltergeist with Les Pattinson, former bassist of the famous 80s post-punk band. Poltergeist played to an expectant public at Hoxton Bar and Kitchen to celebrate the release of their debut album Your Mind is a Box (Let Us Fill It with Wonder).

Pattinson left the Bunneymen two years after they reunited in 1997 and is also currently playing with Wild Swans. Nick Kilroe completes the group with his drumming expertise. This musical chair-type coupling of band members may be hard to keep up with, but the results are interesting.

The band emerged from backstage in matching white hoodies to the tune of the popular spiritual and nursery rhyme song, Dem Bones. Applauded, the trio took position behind their instruments, nodded to their fans and got straight to work without needing to introduce themselves.

Poltergeist has focused on creating instrumental music without the interruption of vocals to distract from their wonderfully complex compositions. Their songs are psychedelic journeys that take you back and forth through time, between the experimental days of the 60s and 70s to the present day. It is a progressive and ambitious sound that falls somewhere between krautrock and prog rock.

The group seemed visibly impressed by their ability to produce their live sound successfully: their instruments pulled together, tighter than a fireman’s knot. Standout tracks were the eponymous Your Mind is a Box and Cathedral, which the audience got more and more into as the performance progressed.

It was hard to fault the set as Sergeant, Pattinson and Kilroe played like seasoned pros, failing to put a foot wrong as they hypnotised the crowd with guitars steeped in reverb and pedal effects, varied bass lines and evolving drum beats. As it came to an end, the band downed their tools and left the stage without saying a word, an indication that they wanted their music to do all the talking.

Samuel Mensah
Photographer: Dimitris Amvrazis

For further information and future events visit Poltergeist’s website here.

Watch the video for Your Mind is a Box (Let Us Fill it With Wonder) here: