Das Contras @ Cafe Royal

A cold and wet November evening in Edinburgh was rapidly replaced with
the welcoming warmth and soul of Das Contras in Café Royal.

Initial impressions of the ensemble on stage were of lounge music. But
only if your lounge is painted a deep terracotta, you have a nightly
group of Latino beauties dressed in tight black dresses tossing back
large glasses of red wine until four in the morning threatening to
steal your soul and replace it with a never ending madness of
melancholy and passion.

From beginning to end there was no defining lead person, all of them
extremely adept at their relative instruments with attention shifting
from sax to keyboard to bass to guitar to the singing. The band had
left any egos at the front door to concentrate on the music. Dave
Webster’s head was lost in the sound created by his keyboard nodding in
time to the audience’s reciprocating appreciation, so smoothly and
timely executed. This was complemented by Sherman Watson on acoustic
and lead vocals, a charismatic presence despite his shambolic
appearance. The drums and bass provided the backbone of timeless soul
shaking grooves and the funk needed, holding back to add a more subtle
flavour to the slower numbers. The bass guitarist was all over his
instrument, especially when the strap fell off his shoulder appearing
to propose to the drummer on one knee for the rest of the song. The
horn section added that final harmony. The sax was (I can’t believe I’m
writing this) a tranquil yet also a powerful force driving the band,
while at other times entirely uplifting.

A refreshing change to guitar bands, their maturity and obviously
studied dedication to their craft created layers of warmth of sometimes
up beat jazz and reggae to despairing sadness. Think Ruben Wilson, gypsy
violins, Miles Davies, filterless French cigarettes, The Bosstones, bull
fighting and Ray Manzerick and you’ll probably wonder what the hell I’m
talking about.

There appeared to be a fairly large fan base with them and rightly so.
It was not just a gig but a celebration and a chance to party.

A joy to watch and even better to listen to.

Chris Catley - Live Music Direct

"This six-piece from Fife combine folk, Latin, reggae, punk and rock to produce engaging songs hard to categorise, easy to like."

Radio Magnetic

"Das Contras! Normally I’d run a mile from anything remotely
jazz-funk, but these guys made me confront my prejudices. They had an
all-enveloping sound, aided by their use of acoustic, rather than
electric, guitar, and another trumpeter to lush things out. Songs such
as “Street Princess” and “Hotel Mama” gave a slightly twisted take on
the everyday, and there were plenty of changes of tempo, with, for
example, the reggae number “Don’t plant a seed” and also a spot of
keyboard noodling.

More brass action came from anarcho-jazz punksters Acoustic Ladyland.
Opener “Road of Bones” summed up their numerous bases perfectly,
beginning with a captivating keyboard melody, morphing into a
Metallica-style guitar riff and then bringing that ear-worming melody
back on the saxophone. Fantastic. “Red Sky” was appropriately expansive.
When saxophonist (“frontman” seems to give him too much of the limelight
that he is obviously happy to share with his bandmates) Pete Wareham
does occasionally take to the mike stand, the result is somewhere
between The Streets and The Clash. But facile comparisons aren’t really
the point – it’s about the vivid here-and-nowness of the moment that you
only ever get from a great live performance. As indeed this was. "

Helen Newbery, Gig Review Scotland

Das Contras - Hiding

Need a circuit break from the current electric? Emo getting you down? Then whisk yourself off to a variety of locations via Das Contras and their expert ability to stand astride over vast musical landscapes whilst maintaining a firm purpose, whether that landscape be folk, jazz, classical or pop.

In Hiding we are rapt in a downfall of hopeful pensiveness, mainly conveyed by means of acoustic folk/pop whilst expertly endorsed by some transcendent string and piano arrangements. Strings in particular carry much of the feeling of longing, and coupled with a simple melody, Hiding offers warmth and familiarity that should connect with everyone. The intimacy is further consummated through lingering yet lax lyrics that offer a tongue-in-cheek stance on the emotions being raised, leaving it free for the listener to choose their own outcome.

Hiding is a flood of intrinsic composition, expert instrumentation and sublime structuring, smartly shrouded in a seemingly simple song. This is only one of the reasons why it is so wonderful. It is a striking display which still only exposes a fraction of what Das Contras are all about.

The Glasgow Reviewer

Das Contras are a band of musicians from Fife in Scotland playing Folk-Funk-Jazz-Punk or something. Elegant and unusual Das Contras display venerable creative ability in their music, with distinctive composition and craftsmanship. They are rare carpenters with a distinct musical vision and spirit, at once eclectic and refined, brisling with improvised energy, a fusion of classical, jazz, reggae influences Das Contras are a rarity and a prize. Give these guys a listen, you won't be disappointed.

Scotcampus

Just another raw, unpolished band fae Fife eh? Er, no, actually. They
might be raw and they’re mostly from Fife, but Das Contras are anything
but unpolished. In fact, they’re a talented six-piece ensemble tipped to
be Scotland’s NEXT BIG THING. If you want a label, that is. And judging
by their sound, this band definitely doesn’t.…

The Das (as their growing fanbase like to call them), have an eclectic
sound defined only by their ability to criss-cross genres - a bit folk,
a bit rock, a bit latino, a bit reggae, a bit punk – it’s a bit of
everything really. And with such a variable style, it’s hard to
pigeon-hole them. But in spite of (or perhaps because of) this, it
works. Fabulously. The one thing you can count on with the Das is that
it’s original and it’s good.

The 6-strong line-up (complete with authentic Argentinian bongo player)
plays unplugged and with a range of instruments at their disposal
(including trumpet, sax and violins), making the Das one of the most
unique undiscovered acts around in Scotland at the moment.

A vocal-led style (the emotive voice of charismatic frontman and Das
co-founder Sher Watson is a big draw) is underpinned by catchy yet
deceptively complex arrangements carefully honed by the Das’ central
collaborators - singer and guitarist Sher and multi-instrumentalist Dave Webster.

With clever lyrics ranging from light hearted (the charming Street
Princess is a quirky ditty about stalking Edinburgh’s own tutu-clad
panhandler) to moving (Deadline is a haunting journey featuring searing
violins) and back again, the whole ensemble are a skilled, tight-knit
group adept at surfing musical styles like teenyboppers flicking through
their Ipod libraries.

The set also includes the reggae beats of Don’t Plant A Seed (this one
would do Pete Tosh proud), the lurching violins of Hiding, the upbeat
rock of Reckless Phase and Hotel Mama, a very cheeky Never Been High,
kick-ass brass in The Wind’s Behind Me and the absolutely banging Smile.

Whichever way the set falls, you can count on a rollercoaster ride…the
Das are best on an intimate scale when they can feed off the crowd’s
energy and the banter between braces-wearing frontman Sher Watson and
his long-term accomplice Dave Webster is often a show in itself.

If there’s a certain trend swinging through the UK music scene at the
moment and the key to it is: find undiscovered gems, pluck them from
obscurity, watch them blossom (think Arctic Monkeys or KT Tunstall), the
Das are surely next in line.

It’s so hard to define the Das, that you might as well not even bother.
Just make sure you see them and figure it out for yourself....

- K.Hurley, Fringe

Like an acoustic Groove Armada Das Contras like their brass and breezy good times tunes.
While Groove Armada stick on some beats to modernise the sound Das Contras keep it plugged out and use instruments like violins, piano and bongos.
Seen as part of an East Coast of Scotland alt.acoustic movement, Das Contras are from rural Fife and centre on duo Sherman Watson on guitar, vocals and Dave Webster, who plays trumpet, piano and also sings.
But the group can do a Goldie Lookin' Chain and rise to eight members on special occasions. From the chirpy Reckless Phase to the mournful Hiding, with its deliciously sad cello, to the torch song Deadline which Nick Cave would be happy to have written, the Contraverse EP is a thought provoking delight - part funtime Frankie, part mournful Minnie.
An absolute joy and one of Scotland's hidden pleasures.

- Rick Fulton, Daily Record

The limits of the English language are reached when trying to describe
Das Contras, so fortunately they are more about the music than the words anyway. With eight members the band barely fit on stage, yet produce a vibrant, eclectic sound that moves from Latino to string-led musings with ease. Managing to create the experience of an indie band surrounded by an orchestra, their entire twenty minutes sounds refreshingly different and the crowd responded by indulging in a bizarre, polite mosh-pit.

Sarah Macinnes, T-Break