Eureka Machines
@ Manchester Dry Bar
Leeds four piece Eureka Machines exude an air of confidence from the moment they take to the Dry Bar stage. Fresh from their performances at the Reading and Leeds festivals, the band arrive in Manchester with one intention: to rock the audience to within an inch of their lives.
Keen to maximise their stage time, the band shun the option of a lengthy sound check in a welcome acknowledgement that they are here to entertain. Clad in the striking identical attire that is quickly becoming their trademark, the band launch straight into the stunning three part a cappella harmonies of 'Scream Eureka'. It is an unconventional yet mesmerising introduction that makes way for an ear-splitting guitar riff. Eureka Machines ignite the Thursday evening crowd. The song is majestic, the sound phenomenal. The remainder of the set does not disappoint. 'Everyone Loves You' is a juggernaut of a song that reminds the audience that they are witnessing a band at the top of their game. Crowd favourite 'Do or Die' already has “Greatest Hits Album" stamped all over it.
The set is delivered with an impressive amount of energy, enthusiasm and confidence. Frontman Chris Catalyst's witty banter helps to create a genuine bond between performer and audience. Eureka Machines are a band that demand your attention. Their set leaves the audience euphoric, yet still wanting more. In the words of the band 'being good is okay, but being better's better'. On tonight's evidence there is no doubt that this band is better.
Words and pics by Stacey Smith
Green B*stards / Higher Council of Mars
@ Kendal Dickie Doodles
Anyone ever been to Kendal? It's got that great Lake District feel of nature and quietness, but it also has the best pub names in the world. From the brilliant Cock and Dolphin, to Dickie Doodles, where the gig was taking place.
The Blackpool 4 piece take to the... well it's not a stage really, it's more the end of the bar where a drum kit's been set up. They start playing at the very late time of 10pm and, despite this, there's quite a few people. And I hope that they enjoyed it as much as I did. HCOM are absolutely brutal. A mix of crashing drums, thunderously distorted guitar and very intelligent bass lines that are made even better by the raw vocals of the self proclaimed un-energetic Ross, who spends half the gig sat down. Not that this is a problem, as the vocals aren't there for lyrical effect, they're there to add to the crushing sound. Highlight was "Planets", with fantastic riffage. Awesome stuff. Needless to say, I'm very excited about going to watch them again; get them in a venue with a quality sound mix and Higher Council of Mars will blow you out of the f*ckin' room.
Kendal's own Green B*stards povide us with a performance of "HOW TO BE F*CKING LOUD!!!!" The start is promising, a massive blast on the guitar leading into a crazy minute or two of feedback and pedal-messing. But then the problem starts. You can hear some vaguely good musical ideas from the band in between the walls of noise, but the fact the band constantly lose time with each other and don't seem to really know what they're playing doesn't win them any fans. They also have possibly the worst frontman in the world who threw his fist in the air wildly while singing what sounded like "Ohhhhh" over and over again.
Paddy Gunn
Kora / The Tivoli / Red
@ Sheffield Academy
Arriving at the Academy too late to see opening act Red, South Yorkshire's very own The Tivoli were half way through their set as my eyes accustomed to the gloom. The substantial crowd seemed to be enjoying what they were hearing, with tracks like 'National Service' creating a definite buzz down front. Whether the band themselves would list The Kinks and Stereophonics as influences I cannot say, but there were certainly elements of both to be detected. But in what stark contrast they stood to tonight's headliners.
When I hear the words 'funk' and 'metal' used to describe a band, I imagine Incubus-inspired surfers lashing their dreadlocks around over ill-advised slap-bass and scratching. New Zealand's Kora are certainly funkier than a George Clinton lookalike convention, and they owe a large debt of gratitude to Faith No More, but they are from an entirely different universe to Brandon Boyd et al. Blending laid back reggae, dub, 80's pop and the lunacy of Mike Patton with seamless brilliance, the Kiwis had the crowd moving from the word go, vocalist Laughton looking like the offspring of Tina Turner and Jonah Lomu leading a Peter Crouch-inspired haka over the tightest, dirtiest beats imaginable. There was a surprise around every corner – over a king-sized riff emerged a piano break reminiscent of a western saloon, harmonies tighter than the security at Heathrow were injected at improbable moments, and from an arsenal of electronic gadgetry emerged an expertly used sample for every day of the year. And not a hint of slap-bass.
'We'd love to play for you all night,' apologised Laughton as the possibility of an encore evaporated. If only that were possible – we may have begun to touch the depths of this band's genius.
Jon Cooper
Three Gigs, One Night
Seeds and Bridges @ Artlink feat. Angharad Davies / Catherine Kontz / Jez Riley French
DIY Hi-5 @ The Adelphi feat. Mammal Hum / The Rocky Nest
Sidekicks Lounge @ The Lamp feat. The Notebook / Awash With Antler
It may be September, but I`m not ready to give up on Summer just yet, so tonight I'm envoking the festival spirits of 'rushing around' to ensure I manage to see three gigs – the fact there are three separate shows, each with different start times highlights just how far the Hull music scene has come on. Anyway enough preaching...
My 'head space' event of the night, probably shouldn't come at the start of it, but first up are Angharad Davies, Catherine Kontz, and Jez riley French playing a number of compositions; some made-up on the spot; some semi-improvised to allow 'tailoring' to this place in time; and others entirely pre-planned. The first half of the concert ends with Davies approaching her violin like she 'had discovered it for the first time'; despite that quirk it is the second part that is the more appealing (probably due to its more conventional nature) notable for the timbres created when all three performs synchronise and for the dusting off of a dulcitone (a small keyboard, using tuned metal bars, not produced since the 1930s).
Onwards and to the Adelphi for DIY Hi-5 night, although I unfortunately have to leave before Pete Green; I do; however, get my dose of fun and frolics with the mighty fine Rocky Nest – a band that never stop getting better. Unfortunately, Mammal Hum are drummer-less and with that they lack impact; all rather a head nodding affair without ever capturing the imagination.
A rush, a push and I'm at the final gig, just in time to capture a couple songs from the dramatic Awash with AntleR; people who read Sandman will already know they are my new favourite band, so I'll save my gushing for a future review when I see their whole set.
And now for the pièce de résistance; the icing on the cake; the grand finale: thee much promised and hyped first Hull gig from The Notebook. Debutants are meant to be shy and retiring, as they attempt to avoid being diced by the difficult opening-night knives; not so The Notebook, who ignore the city's zeitgeist to stumble upon a triumphant antithesis: ambitious, lush, and dark. Their three part ode to labours lost, 'I Love You' rouses the crowd into a sing-a-long and from there Rory, Rich, and company grab the night for themselves.
It's not all flawless with 'Clamour' stuttering midway, but this band can walk away with heads held high knowing that: 'If you thought this was good, then just wait for the next time.'
Mike Reynolds
Lostprophets / Haunts / Flash! Flash! Flash! Photograph
@ Sheffield Academy
It was bound to be a sure fire sell out when Lostprophets announced their intimate gig at the Academy. Flash! Flash! Flash! Proved a worthy crowd warmer with their unique sound and raw enthusiasm, yet The Haunts seemed to play for an eternity much to the audience's frustration. The crowd began to grow weary of waiting for Lostprophets to appear on stage too, which was made substantially worse with Metallica's Master of Puppets playing out of the PA four times in a row.
Once the band did appear on stage, the atmosphere was electric. The band opened with a series of songs from their third release 'Liberation Transmission', including massive hits 'Rooftops' & 'Town Called Hypocrisy'. Lostprophets are a lot more laidback tonight, they're frequently bantering with the audience and even squeeze in time for an epic drum solo too. The band then switched onto playing older songs at the request of the crowd. The biggest crowd pleaser of the night was 'Last Train Home', which remains their biggest hit to date. The even older song 'Shinobi Vs Dragon Ninja' took Lostprophets back to their old metal sounding roots, whilst 'We Still Kill The All Way' was dedicated to the tireless mosh pit.
What made Lostprophets stand out tonight though was their willingness to get the crowd to participate, especially when they played two songs from their currently unreleased fourth album. Front man Ian Watkins was relentless in his pursuit to get the crowd singing along, and it made the band seem so much more impressive. In spite of no encore, the band finished in style with moshing favourite 'Burn Burn', which saw a circle pit take up nearly half on the Academy's capacity. A strong showing from the band, expect them at the arena next year.
Words by Tom Crowther
Pics by Jamie Boynton
Lostprophets / Haunts / Flash! Flash! Flash! Photograph
@ Sheffield Academy
As people anticipate Lostprophets' performance tonight, the night is started off with a bang in the name of Flash! Flash! Flash! Photography. This five piece Punk Pop / Screamo band seemed to try really hard to impress the audience, and it worked. They are a really good band and got the crowd warmed up, which made a great atmosphere. However, they seem to base their sound on other bands, which is a mistake a lot of bands make. In this case, it sounds like they base their style on Madina Lake, which is fine for them but more originality might be better.
Four piece Rock / New Wave band, Haunts, are the next supporting act this evening. They start off pretty slow and the audience are slightly uninterested, but they soon become more lively with bouncy melodies. They are clearly talented musicians, but lack of banter with the audience and just playing song after song with no particular break in between each, made them seem a bit bland and unfortunately had no real spark.
The time for the band that the audience had been waiting for was finally here, and you could feel the amazing atmosphere beforehand. Lostprophets took an unusually large amount of time before they came on stage, but it was definitely worth the wait. They started off their set with a great performance of 'Everyday Combat', which really got the audience excited. Lostprophets just seem to grow more confident on stage and their shows seem to get better each time they play, and they've come a long way since 'The Fake Sound Of Progress' album. Everyone especially enjoyed front man Ian Watkins' drum solo in the middle of the set, and with their the release of their new album next year, they threw a few new tracks in as well. They finish off with 'Burn Burn' and the crowd went mental! A truly entertaining end to their brilliant performance tonight.
Amy Baker
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