The Sly Oyster | culture & entertainment on the sly

The Duke Spirit played a brief, but incredible set last Thursday.  They’ve become more polished since the last time I saw them and relied on the majority of cuts from their sophomore album Neptune. Still, they haven’t lost the roughness of their sharp, shoegazer style of blues.  They played loud and vicious and unhinged.  It’s a sound perfect for small venues - a sonic wall derived straight from My Bloody Valentine, Sonic Youth, Jesus & The Mary Chain and The Velvet Underground.

Frontwoman Leila Moss is captivating as she shimmers around the stage, banging a tamborine and yelping from the bowels of her soul.  She is banshee, a lioness, a frenetic force of energy.  The band around her is a tight unit, led by guitarist Dan Higgins and drummer Olly Betts.  It’s a good night when you’re only complaint is they didn’t play longer.