Ohio-raised, New York-based electronic folk duo The Bengsons make gorgeous narrative music with an alternative slant. Just to hear Abigail and Shaun Bengson’s haunting harmonies float around their measured, delicately-considered compositions would be worth the money alone.
Yet for a show which is at its heart all about music – and imagining its absence and what might fill its space – the talking in between the songs is thrillingly poignant. Amid relatable biographical vignettes, the main theme of the Caitlin Sullivan-directed play reveals itself as Shaun’s degenerative hearing loss, a combination of deafness and tinnitus which audio effects allow the audience to ‘hear’ themselves.
It’s a frightening sound, yet the couple are upbeat and funny, still creating gorgeous songs together. Shaun’s preacher father has the same disability, and as we hear about both men, the loss of music becomes about so much more – the loss of faith in God and belief in the afterlife, and wariness of the one after-death inheritance we know exists, the physical one passed on by the couple to their son.
The only criticism is that the supertitles are often triggered ahead of the text being spoken, which spoils the punchlines for the hearing audience. As one of super-producer Francesca Moody’s (Fleabag, Baby Reindeer) main Edinburgh productions this year all dates are already sold out, but hopefully more space is found, because it’s a magical experience.
Ohio, Assembly Roxy, until 24 Aug (not 11, 18), 3pm