ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ

No-one does twee quite as convincingly as the Scandinavians. Iceland's own Feldberg clearly intend to play us sunny songs to give us a rosy glow, but unfortunately events conspire against their attempts; main vocalist�Rósa Ísfeld is left with nothing but a husk of a voice after "too much Irish partying". Her obvious embarrassment only serves to add to the blushing schoolgirl persona the sweet sounds portray, the dream-like synth coming straight from Tony Hart's gallery. They play up to the sweetness with a slightly ramshackle two-piece arrangement, a laptop taking the place of the other band members they usually have in a live setting. They promise to come back to Belfast with a full band, and their melodies linger in the air after they've played for long enough that a return seems like an inviting prospect.

Rhob Cunningham clearly has fans in the audience here as chatter is met with angry 'shushes' spreading through the venue like a brush fire. It's not quite enough though, as initial curiosity gradually fades. A technical hitch grinds him to a halt briefly and he carries on acapella for a while but the problem seems to remain unnoticed by the majority of the distracted audience, save those who see his puzzled expression when his guitar goes silent. His voice is versatile, one minute slipping into falsetto and the next almost resembling Bob Dylan in 'The Butcher'. This strength might be his weakness though, as this versatility leads to a lack of consistency. Attention-grabbing songs are followed by bland 'fillers' from an artist who, perhaps, has not quite decided who he wants to be.

"There are only two people who could have got me out tonight" says local legend Terri Hooley as he makes a speech, "Bob Marley and Iain Archer", putting into words the reverence seemingly felt by the audience tonight. Beginning with 'Black Mountain Quarry' Archer tells the story of his trip to Germany's Black Forest and how it inspired his latest album To the Pine Roots. He strums his guitar, speaking in short sentences, describing the trees, the cold, the people in a near-whisper, the sounds elongating to become the haunting 'Frozen Lake'. The Black Box becomes a reverby cavern, sounds echoing all around. He moves between six-string and twelve-string guitar with ease, the twelve-string and he together creating a more lush noise than one man and an acoustic has a right to make. Not a singer by any means, Archer almost manages to convince you that he is with his sheer heart.

"Play the Leona Lewis song!" is heard, a nod to his time in Snow Patrol and while that song remains unplayed he doesn't disappoint the fans, mentioning the words "Tired Pony" which elicit an audible gasp from the audience. He closes with 'I Am a Landslide' and, finally, 'Canal Song' which breaks the audience from their trance and they join in, a humbly reverent choir.

Elizabeth McGeown