This Is The Kit, National Theatre, gig review: The musical equivalent of being wrapped in a cosy blanket

It's hard not to be envious of Kate Stables' woolly socks

Jess Denham
Monday 04 January 2016 10:18 GMT
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Kate Stables, frontwoman of underrated folk project This Is The Kit
Kate Stables, frontwoman of underrated folk project This Is The Kit

If you find yourself reaching for a cosy blanket this winter, consider heading to a This Is The Kit gig for the musical equivalent of being wrapped in one.

Multi-instrumentalist Kate Stables makes music as snuggly as it comes, helped at the National’s intimate Temporary Theatre by a band of friends on guitars, saxophones and the drums.

From the richly textured likes of “Silver John” and banjo-led “Easy Pickings” to singing about the healing powers of nature on “Vitamins“, This Is The Kit is unmistakably folk. Often whimsical but never grandiose, Stables beautifully tinges the well-trodden genre with cleverly understated synths to add her own quirks.

Her stage presence is unpretentious and humble and it’s hard not to be envious of the comfy woolly socks she opts for over shoes. It is when Stables ties a tambourine to her ankle that the set’s energy rises and new song “Solid With Grease” is warmly welcomed.

Closing with “Spinney”, the show seems over before it even began at only 45 minutes, with the audience both wanting and expecting more. The lack of any real climax is palpable but perhaps leaving the small crowd craving seconds is no bad thing. Hot chocolate, anyone?

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