In the upstairs performance room.
The first set was all acoustic, the second set all electric.

A review of tonights gig at The Betsey Trotwood, Clerkenwell, London
I was very lucky tonight to attend an intimate Robyn gig at The Betsey Trotwood in Clerkenwell, just outside the City of London. The gig was somewhat under the radar, only being advertised when a handful of tickets were left on sale, and the venue capacity is only fifty people! Before I go on, I am sorry to hear that Robyn's US tour was cancelled. I hope those fans can see him him live again soon.

I've been to The Betsey to see various gigs four or five times before, and I've also gigged there with a former band. Robyn is clearly a fan of the place, having played here a few times. He and Emma appeared in the venue's online campaign to save it, after they experienced financial difficulties. Betsey Trotwood was apparently a character in a Charles Dickens Novel. Dickens wrote mainly in Kent, where the brewery who owns the venue is based. Robyn played the upstairs stage, which is akin to a victorian parlour. The ground floor is a tiny bar / restaurant, and there's also a basement venue, which is essentially an underground cellar, which is a tiny seven foot tall cave!

Robyn played two sets. The first was acoustic and the second electric, with shirt change.

Here is some of Robyn's banter which I made note of:

'Folk/Rock is one of the portals I came into, a long with the sound of Dylan's sexy out of tune guitar'.

'All of these songs are written by me but nothing comes out of nowhere.'

'The more truthful you are, the more boring you are, as explaining things is difficult, as everything is so complicated.'

'I have a lot of wires under my feet on this stage. Henry Tudor, before the battle of Bosworth had a lot of wires under his feet, and he asked why he had so much wire over his noble head.'

'For this next song, I wrote a B-side to it about three years ago. I can't remember what that was called, and there are no copies available of it on the merch table.'

'I'm also playing here tomorrow for a matinee. I suspect many of you will be here then. I will be joined by my neice, and I will also be playing some piano. Please do bring your own cucumber sandwiches.'

Setlist: (please correct any mistakes)
Set 1:
The Shuffleman
Tonight
Ole Tarantula
The Man Who Loved the Rain
The Cheese Alarm
Winchester
Sometimes A Blonde
The Yip Song
(Unknown - possibly a Dylan cover)
I Wanna Destroy You
Set 2:
My Mind is Connected...
I Often Dream of Trains
The Sir Tommy Shovel
Sally Was A Legend
Queen of Eyes
I Am This Thing
Chinese Bones (original)
Raymond and the Wires
Museum of Sex
Insanely Jealous
Airscape

Matt E