As part of her between songs chat Nabihah Iqbal mentioned how impressed she was that Norwich has (or had) 52 churches – so hopefully she’ll appreciate this description of her gig being something of a curate’s egg.
Largely based around her 2023 album Dreamer, the music is a mix of shoegaze, electronica, guitar indie, and post-punk.
When it works, on tracks like the punchy This Would Couldn’t See Us, and the up-tempo electronica Gentle Heart, it really flies. Iqbal’s lyric writing potential comes through on several tracks, including Zone 1-6000, which resembles a marginally janglier version of Saint Etienne’s soft spoken word track Finisterre.
Elsewhere, like the album’s title track we get drifting trance tones that fail to give any body to her words; Sunflower is similarly lost. We know she can write compelling lyrics, but there also quite a few consonant free noises that may be meant meaningfully, but come across vacant. The odd occasions her guitarist adds backing vocals, it really doesn’t help.
Iqbal and the band clearly have musical chops, as witnessed by a sharp cover of The Cure’s A Forest, but too often it’s their not pressed in to creating discernible forms.
While I loved her admiration for the city – it’s not often you get visiting artistes namechecking Looses or praising Hoopers army surplus shop – the gig was just fine, but not in the best sense.
- The Norfolk and Norwich Festival continues until 25 May 2025.
