Daffo @The George Tavern, London (Live Review) ^Featured

Daffo

The George Tavern

Words & Pics by Captain Stavros

A Feverish Dive into Country Chaos

The George Tavern is packed to the rafters. The air is thick with anticipation and the scent of denim, both literal and metaphorical. Daffo, the name on everyone's lips, is set to take the stage, and the crowd is buzzing like a hive on overdrive.

The theme of the night? Denim. An unfortunate choice given the sweltering heat, but fashion waits for no one. As we waited, pressed against the stage like cheese in a toastie, the atmosphere was electric.

Daffo emerges, cowboy boots several sizes too big, exuding a charm that's both endearing and chaotic. Gabi Gamberg’s voice comes in rich and full, her country twang cutting through the room with clarity. A heartfelt "We love you, Daffo!" pierces the air, met with a humble acknowledgment.

"Slow doooaaawoon," Gabi sings, the drawl stretching wide and low. She shares, "This is my first time in the UK ever, super stoked to be here. This is also the first time in my life I've sold out a show, which is really cool." The crowd erupts, knowing this won't be the last.

The audience is feverish, locked into every note. Gabi introduces a new track, ‘Sideways’, requesting a ton of reverb on the vocals. The song dances with itself, the band members swaying as if with phantom partners. The drummer, glued to the kit, seems ready to burst free.

Next up, a winter song is introduced to cool down the room, a miscalculation, as it only turns up the heat. It’s likely the unreleased ‘Winter Hat’, a track that brought more fire than frost.

“I will kill a spider if it gets too close”, Gabi sings. The crowd erupts, joining in word for word. It's ‘Wednesday’, a standout from the 2021 EP Crisis Kit, and the singalong is visibly moving for Gabi and the band, the kind of communion that makes a night feel significant.

"When I'm in hell," Gabi declares, "Let's face it, we're all probably going to hell, but it's gonna be a party!" The fretwork backflips, a rolling lurch of sound that crests and crashes in a sharp, deliberate drop. The audience, far from winded, yells their approval straight through the final note.

"Can everybody bark?" Gabi shouts. The crowd obliges without hesitation. ‘Go Fetch’ launches, a thundering, upbeat tune full of crash-heavy chaos. Picture a mess of distorted dog faces flapping in a frenzy, total absurd joy.

"Cheers everyone!" Gabi hollers, taking a deep pull from a pint. "This next one's about God." The crowd already knows the lyrics to ‘Good God’ and belts along, voice for voice, nearly drowning the band out. The applause afterward is long and loud, the energy unrelenting.

Throughout the set, Gabi’s vocal control is unmistakable; gritty, elastic, but never faltering. The band’s sound has that homegrown garage feel, like someone duct-taped the pieces of a busted Weezer Blue Album and a Kurt Vile B-side together and then let it all play at once in the back of a hot van. Raw and real.

The band's reactions to the crowd’s energy are wide-eyed and ecstatic. They're visibly overwhelmed, exchanging glances of disbelief and joy at every cheer and singalong. The heat only fuels the delirium; by the end, it felt like even the air was sweating.

For the penultimate track, Daffo pulls a volunteer on stage, someone to play harmonica with no real expectation of talent. The result? Total chaos and great fun. The song, ‘Doe See Doe’, was a crowd favourite with the sharpest lyrics of the night.

Setlist Highlights:

‘Sideways’

‘Winter Hat’

‘Wednesday’

‘When I'm in Hell’

‘Go Fetch’

‘Good God’

‘Doe See Doe’

Daffo's performance at The George Tavern was a testament to the raw, unfiltered energy of emerging country-infused indie rock. A night of sweat, sound, and unbridled enthusiasm, a gig that won't be forgotten anytime soon.