Talking in Code at The Southgate, Devizes

I’ve got this Jetpack app on my phone which allows me to make adjustments to the site. There’s a new feature on it notifying me of articles published on this day in previous years. It revealed that on this day last year I fondly reviewed Talk in Code’s single launch gig at The Vic in Swindon. Some things never change; last night I dropped into the Southgate where Talk in Code smashed it again…

Some stage banter included drummer Jambo claiming he had a “lot to do back here,” reminded me of the year they played the Fulltone Festival where he temporarily mislaid his drumsticks! 

At the Vic Talk in Code play their homeground, whereas The Southgate is usually affiliated with blues or folk aficionados, and the Fulltone is an orchestral event. Although these three gigs vastly contrast, Talk in Code look equally comfy at either. If they were a creature from the Harry Potter universe they’d surely be the Occamy, a serpentine with choranaptyxic wings, allowing it the magical ability to grow or shrink to fit the exact size of the space it is in.

Just how the Occamy doesn’t change appearance, only size, neither does Talk in Code change their strictly original set, only to fit, yet still manage to thrill any crowd no matter the diversity of their bookings.

The essence of pop is imitable and “catchy,” not to be niche, or these days of sampling, even wholly original. A factor of non-commerciality is to be a cult. Talk in Code balances this with a popular fanbase, “the Talkers” and this unique yet universal synth indie style which, with multi-era influences any age can reflect off, appeals to a wide range. That’s the secret of Talk in Code and it never fails to entertain.

If Talk in Code time travelled back to the eighties, there’s little doubt in my mind they’d be a classic band akin to Duran Duran, Level 42 or perhaps Ah-Ha, and they’d be playing a stadium by now. Such is detrimental changes to the music industry they thrive locally, only sporadically reaching further afield. Amidst their fanbase they are that accomplished, and deserved, as they chant their songs back to them as if they really were pop stars. For in which case quantumly, they are.

Goody bags and Lego sets of the band among their merch suggest prime and strategic marketing, still you’ve got to be in the club to know it’s true; Talk in Code will thrill not just you, but your whole family young and old. I looked around at the people dancing at The Gate, as I often do to settle my appraisal as more than personal opinion, and it proves it, each and every time. And that’s why, yeah, I bash on about Talk in Code a lot, but maybe not too much!

I’ve actually a mission at the popular Three Crowns to highlight an act we’ve not mentioned before; the next review I’ll work on. But I could never allow myself to miss a Talk in Code gig at my local. Live music at The Southgate has been such a staple for so long now, it risks folk taking it for granted, but nights like this prove it still has what it takes to be that squeeze box of quality, especially in hosting original acts like Talk in Code.

The guys took a first half of their earlier and more obscure tunes, still rocking the Gate, and a second half whereby they celebrate this continued dedication to creating danceable indie-pop anthems. Safe in knowledge The Southgate was appeased, and I was so familiar the guys would carry out orders uncompromisingly,  I headed off early to see what was occurring at The Three Crowns. Had I not been on a promise, I’d have stayed with Talk in Code, because pop demands an affliction for the familiar, at least it does when it’s as perfected as Talk in Code.

As for the Southgate, worthy gigs abound there every weekend. Keep in the loop via our event calendar, and pop down there. I endeavour to list them as they come in, though Facebook shares of their chalkboard can be more sporadic these days, and I forget to take a snap of it when I’m there!!  

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