Goat at the Coronet, London, gig review: Tribal drone-rock continues to enthral despite longueurs

Exquisite musicianship throughout meant that by the final moments of ‘Goatman’ all were once again enraptured

In a smaller indoor venue the impact of Goat’s voodoo chic attire and hyperactive stage presence had diminishing returns as the night proceeded

Goat, the enigmatic band who claim to hark from Korpilombolo in the northern reaches of Sweden, released their fourth album Requiem earlier this month, almost two years since their hit Commune. The experimental fusion band released their first EP in 2012, and ever since have been that band your friend has just discovered.

After a heavy atmospheric build up (what else might one expect from the psychedelic sextet), Goat broke in with the first track from Requiem, “Union of Sun and Moon”, much to the delight of the huge crowd assembled in the Coronet. The arrival of the pan pipes merited their own applause.

At Field Day 2016 Goat easily filled out one of the main tents. At the outdoor festival, their brand of tribal aesthetics was exciting and compelling. Unfortunately, inside the Coronet the impact of their voodoo chic attire and hyperactive stage presence had diminishing returns as the night proceeded.

The crowd were with them, but the 90-minute set was wearing at times. Requiem’s touchstones such as “Trouble in the Streets” were well received, but overlong forays into second album Live Ball Room Ritual (2013) sapped some of the energy from an otherwise willing audience. Even “Run to Your Mama”, their breakout hit from 2012’s World Music was fatigued by its extension from four to 10 minutes.

All that said, their exquisite musicianship throughout and a return to more drone-rock tracks during the encore meant that by the final moments of “Goatman” we were all once again enraptured.