Swans at Project House Gig Review
Image credit: Fred Wood.
On the 7th of November, acclaimed post-rock band Swans performed at Project House as part of the first half of the Europe Tour for 2025, which shall be their last. The accompanying album, Birthing, was released on May 30th of this year. Swans are rather familiar with the UK, as they have run a large number of tours in Europe, and even headlined the 2010 Supersonic Festival in Birmingham. However, this was the band’s first (and last) time performing at Project House.
At 7:30pm, the doors (or rather, gate) opened to a long line of people. Three rows of people were already at the front of the stage, 30 minutes before the opening act. Many were buying merchandise at the stall to the opposite end. It was fairly cheap, even for a smaller venue and band. They sold a variety of vinyl, CDs, and shirts of the band’s albums. This included a book written by Michael Gira (vocalist, songwriter, acoustic guitar, frontman) titled ‘The Knot’, a collection of every Swans lyric as of 2022, as well as a number of short stories.
The opening act was Jessica Moss, former violinist & background vocalist of Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra (abbreviated SMZ), and founding member of Black Ox Orkestar. She greeted the crowd cheerfully, and we reciprocated her emotions. Before Moss began performing, she called for the liberation of Palestine to the cheering crowd, stating ‘no one is free until we are all free’. Moss then proceeded to perform the first half of her latest album Unfolding (2025), totalling 30 minutes. Her performance was rather somber, yet passionate. She was in deep focus while playing the violin marvellously, utilising looping pedals to achieve the hypnotic ambience found on the album. Moss also used multicoloured bells and chains to replicate the jingling in the second song of Unfolding titled ‘One, Now’. The audience was encouraged by Moss to close their eyes, if they could, and envelop themselves in the sound. At the end of her performance, she was met with applause.
After a ten-minute break, a few members of Swans (Michael Gira, lap steel guitarist Kristof Hahn, electric guitarist Norman Westberg, and bassist Dana Schechter, of Bee and Flower) went on stage to test their equipment. Most of the audience (myself included) cheered under the impression they were going to start their performance, though they left a couple minutes after, leaving us hanging in the wait a little while longer.
Finally, at 20:45pm, Swans began their performance. The crowd was hyped, many barely able to hold onto their drinks in excitement. Michael Gira greeted the crowd, and asked the audience to not use their cell phones while they played. Although most honoured his request, there were a few among the crowd that still recorded, even with multiple performers being able to see. A man in front of me was even scolded by security a couple of times. Nonetheless, most were attentive as they started with ‘The End of Forgetting’, a 35-minute song exclusively played live (though it will eventually be released on a live album). The mellow instrumental contrasted with the uncontrollable excitement from the people. The sound was absolutely beautiful, a fantastic choice to begin the long night of dense soundscapes that Swans are known for.
Throughout the night, most of the band focused their attention on their instruments, apart from bassist Christopher Pravdica, who was smiling and grinning constantly while still playing the bass very well. During the lengthy instrumental breaks (excluding those involving acoustic guitar, of course), Gira would begin performing what could be called an interpretive dance, flailing his hands and arms around both as a way to signal to the band members at different parts, and (from my interpretation) to further immerse himself in the multilayered sound of the band.
At the end of the intense & noisy second song ‘The Merge’ (the sixth track from Birthing), Michael comedically introduced each band member and gave them humorous titles, starting with Hahn and working his way right to Pravdia. Notably, he named Schechter as ‘the woman who leaps over tall buildings and takes a piss’. This gave rise to laughter from the audience, staff, and even a couple of the band members. They proceeded to play the last three songs: ‘A Little God In My Hands’, ‘Paradise Is Mine’, and ‘Newly Sentient Being’, the third of which is also currently concert-only material. At this point in the tour the majority of the crowd had been standing stationary for around two and a half hours, I myself was rather tired. The venue had no seats, except for a dedicated physical disability section to the side.
The band decided to extend the instrumental breaks for the last three songs, and they played for significantly longer than expected. Despite the tired legs from hours of standing still, it was a welcome experience. Listening to Swans perform live was a fantastic experience. Every instrument blended into a marvellous and unique sound blasting through the massive speakers. The repeating basslines, the electric guitar caked in effects, the slow drumming, the droning of the lap steel, all came together and formed an unforgettable concert. I felt very fortunate to be able to witness Swans live, especially on their final tour before the band moves into the ‘smaller sound’ Gira has been anticipating.
As for Project House itself, it was a good venue. The merchandise prices were very reasonable, although the lack of seating could potentially turn some customers away, especially the physically disabled (though there is a disabled section as mentioned previously, the view is rather poor). It was quick to get in and out, even with the sold out show and number of attendees. It is worth going to Project House, even for artists & bands you are unfamiliar with.
Words by Fred Wood