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LIVE REVIEWS *3
Random Hand
@ Cert 18, York
On first impressions, looking at Random Hand you see a hungry band just looking for a good time and a “rowdy” gig. That’s what every band wants, but take a look at the fun fuelled, raw energy that radiates from the stage to the crowd and you will see every member from lead vocalist (and trombonist) Robin Lietch, to hard hitting drummer Joe, really enjoy what they are doing. This is a rarity today. Indeed, seeing this band live, you really get a sense of how much this lot can achieve.
Stand-outs for me include the metallic ‘Morally Blind’ and ‘Tear Down’, but it’s all good and it is all DIFFERENT! Again, the fact that these musicians really care about ska as a genre is what shines through. They really care about their fans and putting on a great show in a sweaty little venue in the middle of summer. Something tells me, and no doubt if you check them out you’ll understand, that these boys could entertain thousands, and frequently do, even though the jokes are a little below par at times.
The diversity of the music heightens the idea that these guys have something different, sure they share the conventions of the ska punk band, say Reel Big Fish, with trombones a’rocking and lightening quick punk drum stylings, but (and others have noted) I could see these guys doing support slots for a System Of A Down or an Incubus. I’m telling you it’s catchy, bouncy stuff people.
Seriously, maybe the band don’t see it themselves, but go to a live show, and the passion and showmanship of each member of the band is reminiscent of the early, funky Nu-Metal of Incubus, while with a crazed glint in his eye, and at times politically relevant lyricisms, Leitch and co remind us of SOAD’s heavy cross genre mix-up. I would like to close by saying, next time these guys come to you, go see. I happened on them by chance, and I left thinking that they had something that to put it simply is “funky groovy ska rock sexness.” No, it’s not a professional definition by any means, but you won’t see a more passionate live show. These guys believe in what they play, so kick up your heels and dance like a loon, the ska rock revolution is coming soon (or again..multiple times,) remember it’s all about “sexness” my babies. Enjoy.
Dom Smith
Regina Spektor
@ City Varieties, Leeds
She wonders onstage, like it’s the most natural thing in the world for her. She’s radiant. She gives us a little embarrassed smile - a thank you for the rapturous applause she’s receiving. She walks to a lone microphone, and starts singing ‘Ain’t No Cover’, accompanying her voice only with a pulsing heartbeat that she beats out on her mic. Anyone who’s heard Regina Spektor’s singing voice - on record or live - will know that she doesn’t need anymore than that.
It’s a stunning voice. So expressive with an impressive range, and she has absolute control over it. And of course, there’s no point in having a great voice if you don’t know what to do with it. Well, Regina knows what she is doing, be it distorting stories of biblical figures (‘Samson’), telling a simple little story about finding a man’s wallet (‘The Wallet’) or just using her voice as another instrument to play along with her piano (‘20 Years of Snow’) - manipulating syllables, repeating words, sighing, groaning.
For most of her set she’s sat at her piano, occasionally stamping out a beat with her heals, or, during ‘Poor Little Rich Boy’, hammering a beat out with a drum stick on a chair while playing her piano with one hand. That’s it. There’s no band, no backing tapes, and she doesn’t need any more. Her playing has far more in common with classical pianists than with the anti-folk (just what is that supposed to mean?) genre in which she is often placed, and shifts from moments of quiet simplicity to aggressive blasts of booming bass. And alongside her voice, it’s more than enough to keep the entirety of the City Varieties silenced.
Peculiarly enough, for one with such a mastery of her instrument, she switches over to her electric guitar - an instrument she seems far from proficient in - for two numbers, ‘Bobbin’ For Apples’ and ‘That Time’. But she gets away with it, you know. She’s a genuine performer and what her playing lacks, her vocal chords and clever lyrics more than make up for it.
And then, after a set of over an hour passes by horribly quickly (despite the crushing heat), she gets up, curtseys, waves to us, and she’s gone. Once the audience stops clapping, they remain in silence for a moment. It was that kind of gig. Special.
Tom Goodhand
Shortfall
@ The Mixing Tin, Leeds
Local rock outfit Shortfall made the shot trip to the Mixing Tin and put on a vibrant display of grunge rock. After enduring a fairly subdued opening act, which seemed more like watching McFly given the young teenage crowd - mainly consisting of screaming girls. Shortfall took to the stage and without much of an introduction blasted straight into their set. ‘Tears In The Rain’, was a tightly performed song with front man Mike supplying vocals reminiscent of grunge legends Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam and Scott Stapp formerly of Creed. Although at times stage presence was lacking, the actual quality of their playing more than made up for this.
Catchy songs such as ‘Skylines’, which sounded very similar to Canadian rockers Nickelback, had good crunching riffing as the back bone of the song which gradually built to a white hot guitar solo from lead guitarist Paul, which really got the place buzzing. ‘Turn Against the Crowd’ saw a more sensitive side to the general grunge sound that the band possess and it was this tune in particular where you could really feel and hear the range in Mike’s vocals which was generously appreciated by the punters.
Musically Shortfall are a tight outfit and judging by this performance, shows that they have the potential to make it on the thriving Leeds circuit. Great value for money.
Tom Maidment
Shut Your Eyes And You’ll Burst Into Flames / Redcarsgofaster / Ever Since The Lake Caught Fire / The Vellocet @ The Brudenell Social Club, Leeds
“RRRROWWWWWW” rollocks the battle cry from the slender stage of the Brudenell Social Club as Shut Your Eyes And You’ll Burst Into Flames push the realms of noise, intensity and modern dance beyond the realms of its happy hardcore roots and into an altogether more scary but contagious place. This is the ‘Party Song’, that was SYEAYBIF and tonight was a night of severely good post-punk of which the quality probably won’t be replicated any time soon..
The excellently titled and immaculately well constructed Ever Since The Lake Caught Fire are one hell of an exciting prospect for BritRock. They’ve found the perfect blend of variety mixed with a truly unified common thread of style that promises every song is interesting to the end. The future looks infinitely bright for ESTLCF.
The same can be said for Leicester’s Redcarsgofaster, who’s addition of two guitarists is a touch of genius, as when layered atop the keyboard the band manage to create at times a simply breathtaking wall of melodic sound. Opening with last year’s sold out single ‘Sanctuary’, Redcarsgofaster travel at breakneck speed through their full scale of post punk exquisiteness. RCGF black countries answer to ATD-I? Why not!
In a night curated by SYEAYBIF it’s fitting that they’d manage to steal the show over their similarly ace compatriots. It’s not the tightest set, it’s not the most concise set, but when the songs eventually do arrive, it’s not hard to see why the band are receiving plaudits and support slots left, right and indeed centre in recent months. With ‘Pterodactyl Skin Trousers’ now apparently on terminal leave having been spliced with the forthcoming dance-rock opus b-side, ‘Amputee Smile’ is left to open the set with a spark as opposed to a smoulder. Guitarist Dave’s vocals get an airing on a triumphantly loud ‘Kingdom Of Goats’ and as per it’s left to the infamous ‘Party Song’ to close the curtain on a terrific night of new music. British post-punk is alive and well at the Brud.
Luke Ramsden
The Sons / Vim and Vigor / Speshuls / Amphemia
BOTB @ Junktion 7, Nottingham
The First band to take the stage tonight were The Sons, who performed and acted like they had done so many of this type of competitions before, playing with a mature and confident swagger. There were clearly a lot of influences in their sound ranging from post-punk/ Indie to 60s’ breezy pop and their set was all the better for it with the songs all being that little bit different and varied with some great choruses. They were tight and accomplished but they didn’t really have that spark that captured the crowd however much they tried. Not disappointing but not exciting either.
Next, completely contrasting the Sons were the band Vim and Vigor, whereas the previous band faded into the background, the androgynous lead singer of Vim and Vigor stood out like a cross between Phil Oakey and Morrissey. They are basically an emo band but saving themselves from having a monotonous sound was the innovative and exciting use of electronics that featured through all of their songs. Although towards the end of their set they did drift into a dull emo sound, there is definitely potential for a very exciting and diverse band to take shape.
The youngest band of the night was ‘Speshuls’ (pronounced specials) and to be honest they weren’t! They genuinely seemed to be having a good time though and that’s what counts I guess! The music had the obvious influences of Green Day/ kings of Leon / The Strokes and they were all accomplished musicians. Though the vocals lacked and that did let the songs down, the use of keyboards was fresh giving the songs an extra dimension that would have otherwise been missing. A very young band but with time to develop their style and sound they have a lot of potential.
Certain bands you just know are going to be good before they even sing a note or play a chord and the last band of the night Amphemia certainly delivered. They were professional, passionate and most of all determined, they played with a hunger that none of the other bands displayed. Primarily Amphemia are a metal band but with fantastic combination of powerful baselines and an innovative use of keyboards combined well produce to a very loud, diverse and thoroughly enjoyable bit of metal. Amphemia were by far the best band of the night and not meant disrespectfully they were a little bit too good to be appearing in this competition and they slide on through to next round.
Ben Matkin
Stoney / Neil McSweeney
@ Plug, Sheffield
Without even realising it, I've been listening to Stoney's new album 'The Scene And The Unseen' at work for the past couple of weeks. Each and every time, I've almost enquired about the identity of the artist responsible for such a wonderful and diverse collection of songs. Little did I realise the talent in question resides within the confines of these seven hills, and would be officially launching said record this very evening.
An unexpected treat, then, but by no means the solitary highlight. Opening act, and another of Sheffield's hidden gems, Neil McSweeney picks up an acoustic guitar and proceeds to invest every inch of his six-foot-something frame into delivering a collection of songs so subtle and well-crafted that you can't help but be drawn into his lo-fi world.
Backing band The Gents soon join him, providing an understated accompaniment to McSweeney's magnetic stage presence. There's an intensity about the performance of the bespectacled songwriter, visually a cross between Jesus and John Lennon, that shares a common cause with troubadours du jour Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan, though the music is more rootsy, traditional, folk in nature. Songs like 'Postcards' and 'London Road' are meant to be heard on a winter's evening, mug of coffee in hand and snow on the ground, but even in the height of summer they deserve much wider acclaim.
How on earth Mark Stoney's face isn't already plastered all over national music magazines is a mystery to me, but with the new record receiving some notable press plaudits that could change sooner rather than later. What's certain is that this 25-year-old multi-instrumentalist oozes star appeal, and, for once, possesses enough talent to back up the bravado.
Bouncing around the stage like an overexcited puppy, Stoney is the sort of performer you watch for the entire set just to see if he's going to do something remarkable. Tonight, we're treated to a glimpse of his 'S' branded, Superman style y-fronts (presumably for the ladies, though not his mother who, he tells us, is in the crowd) but the most noteworthy aspect of this set is how good the songs sound despite having had only a few day's practice with the musicians up there with him.
Recording the album and playing all the instruments on his own, Stoney's band tonight comprises of musicians from various bands and locations who've had barely 24 hours to learn the songs – but you wouldn't know it. 'Jailbird' bubbles with melody beneath a La's-esque vocal and some electronic wizardry, last year's single 'Soap In A Bathtub' sounds positively huge live, an anthem in the waiting, and new song 'Devil' (title TBC), hinting at a heavier direction, goes down a storm.
The Stoney sound is tricky to pin down, though there's plenty of guitar this isn't guitar music per se, and with a discernible groove it often crosses into electronic territory. There's something of an Englishness about the choruses, skyscraping and anthemic in the classic Kinks/Bowie sense, yet the verses often take a thoroughly modern spoken/sung format. Like Beck and Super Furry Animals, Stoney hops genres with consummate ease but still manages to put his own stamp on the end product. In twelve months time, there's a fair chance the music of this Croydon native will be discussed with similar reverence.
Rob Webb
Sweet Seduction / The Pleasures / King Lizard
@ Junktion 7, Nottingham
Sweet Seduction are a band sweat dripping with heavy metal sleaze rock n’ roll! A band now well established for what they do, at this part of the underground scene at the very least. By the end of their set (unfortunately the only part I managed to catch) the band had easily dominated the whole of the stage and looked awesome. Finishing off with their anthem One Hell of a Night, the bass player climbing on top of the barrier that separates the band from the crowd whilst still managing to rock out on his guitar! Looking every bit as good as they sound – make no mistake that Sweet Seduction are good time dirty rock n’ roll fuelled monsters!
Black glam rock, glitter-trash, with a sort of industrial kick in the arse! All the way from Germany, The Pleasures adapt this formula, sounding either something totally different and new, or maybe something that we are familiar with - just not used to hearing it done this well! Lots of effort has gone into imagery, all dragged up with lots of makeup and glitter being thrown into the crowd on numerous occasions throughout the set. The songs fit the band in every respect, sometimes with an underlining dark feel. Steeling Children of the Revolution and making it their own sounded cool! Whilst trying to climb the banister, the lead singer manages to accidentally demolish a chunk of the overhead roofing above the stage, pulling it down on top of him. The band carries on and this Spinal Tap moment is overlooked as being just part of the show.
I think to be fair to The Pleasures; the band deserved a few more faces in the crowd from beginning to end. Although pulling in more of a crowd and with more heading towards the front by the end of their set, I think they made an impact. The majority seemed impressed and leaving the odd one or two shocked!
Instantly kicking off with an excitingly charged impact – King Lizard have that something special when it comes to their live performances. Lots of stage presence, great hard ballsy rock n’ roll songs that stick, and the band look and sound sharp. Delivering a blistering set covering all of the above criteria, fronted by Flash on lead vocals, there’s no shortage of the good old-fashioned ass kicking rock n’ roll attitude. Easily winning over tonight’s crowd and adding to their growing fan base, King Lizard would certainly be welcomed next time round!
Nick Parnham
Unity Day
Josephs Well / Engine Rooms Stage @ Hyde Park, Leeds
The government makes all these efforts to try and stop us damaging ourselves. They recommend ways to protect our ears, they try and tell us how to act so as not to break our bones, they encourage us to drink in moderation.
Then, those evil bastards at The Engine Room and Josephs Well go a put on loads of Leeds’ best bands, in a field with a beer tent at the back. Not only that, we can bring our own booze. And it’s all to help support ‘unity’ in Hyde Park. Brilliant.
So, being the selfless, supportive local journalist I am, I promptly turn up on this sunny day at 12pm, can of cheap larger in hand and am noble enough to watch That Fucking Tank. God, I love being altruistic. Tank are superb as ever. Gut-churning blasts of noise, occasional bursts of disco beats. Swaying. Andy dropping to his knees like a guitar god, James carefully switching between simple taps and devastating crashes. Why aren’t all mornings like this?
Vessels, in comparison are tame. They’re safe. They’ve probably listened to far too much Explosions In The Sky and don’t quite seem to have found a unique voice of their own. They’re all clearly very able though, given a few months, they could be approaching something special.
We must take a short break from proceedings here. Like all good rock’n’rollers, I had to go for lunch with my parents. Get me.
Thank God it was all wrapped up by the time Sky Larkin came on. After a shaky opening, they display a level of confidence and a strength of song writing that they have no right to be capable of yet. The sound lies somewhere between PJ Harvey and Sonic Youth, with strong melodies competing with full, aggressive sounding guitar attacks and chirpy synths.
Vatican Jet are a party band, first and foremost, and they get the tent pretty damn full. Their quirky rock’n’roll is good festival fodder. No doubt about it.
As is always the case at festivals, the toilets were a nightmare, and my quest for somewhere to empty my bladder meant that almost all Voltage Union’s set was missed. Except that is, for ‘Seaside’ which was a rather splendid pop song that recalled a rather more interesting Hot Hot Heat.
Downdime were, of course, very good, very charming and played their very catchy good time indie pop - with dark overtones - as superbly as ever. God, I love that band.
I also love The Acutes, although Dave did his best to drown out the drums and vocals by turning his guitar up way too loud, the strength of their songs really shone through regardless.
Now, a sad moment, The Playmates’ last ever gig. The Playmates were actually a rather fine poppy punk band with some really decent - if not revolutionary songs. They somehow put on one of the performances of the day - quite a feat considering the company they were keeping. We all leave the tent having jumped around and got covered in beer. Surely the sign of a good band.
What a funny time for The Somatics to be playing. On either side they have dumb but fun punk (The Playmates) and rock’n’roll (Jack Afro). It’s a good job that they’re such an impressive live act really. Although their set seems to consist of no more than three songs - that’s the problem with writing ten minute long songs - each one is an impressive example of truly psychedelic, outrageously melodic song writing that borders on the outstanding.
Jack Afro don’t really seem to quite have what it takes to be a good live band. Too few of their songs are strong enough to really stand out as much more than bog-standard rock’n’roll fodder. Perhaps they just need no spend more time crafting each tune, because when they do it right, they can be irresistible.
Y-E-S-B-O-S-S are still teaching us how to spell their name, and we still know. They seem to be getting rather cocky now, and it’s not a good look. Whilst ‘Indie Kids’ is still lyrically hilarious and ‘Tongues Tied In Knots’ has great vocals from Tom from ¡Forward, Russia! in the chorus, ‘NYB’ and ‘Hospital Time’ just don’t seem to be in the same ball park.
It’s a shame that either the PA or the soundman - which have been fairly decent all day - just can’t seem to cope with ¡Forward, Russia!. ¡Forward, Russia! are fairly difficult to get your head around at the best of time, but when the vocals are drowned out by a booming bass and the guitars sit on the wrong side of clanging, it’s difficult to remember just how brilliant they can be. I’m sure they’ll set us right again next time they’re in Leeds.
And anyway, who are we to complain? We’ve just spent the day watching quality local bands, getting through packs of cheap larger, and it’s barely cost us a penny. Good work lads. Very good work. Same time next year?
Tom Goodhand
Vatican Jet / Sky Larkin / Kram
Club Melody Maker @ The Mixing Tin, Leeds
Walking into a room while Kram are playing is a mistake. They’re Very Fucking Loud. The sudden difference in volume from the relatively quiet Albion Street to the booming, Wagnerian rock of Kram is enough to drive a man insane. For those of us with minds tough enough to cope with the volume, there is a huge amount of promise to heard shrieking out of that there PA. Treading a line between early Muse and the more recent work of fellow Leodensians (I’m sure the Kaisers made up that word) This Et Al, it’s an incredibly promising show for a band who after some streamlining and some more gigs could definitely look to be onto something.
Walking out of room (to answer a phone call - damn phone) before Sky Larkin is also a mistake. It means you’ll miss the opening Korg twiddling of ‘Keepsakes’, and thus be a little miserable for the rest of the set. But we can get through this. ‘Keepsakes’ may be a personal highlight but there’s still a whole host of other bruisingly powerful songs. Katie’s voice is always going to be the focus - soft (but not quiet) and gentle amongst the more viciously attacked guitars, booming basslines and superbly whacked drums. Even the working-in of a new bassist can’t disguise the fact that Sky Larkin are within reach of being one of the most exciting bands in our city.
By now, mistakes had been learnt from and there were no further trips outside before Vatican Jet. If a band has a genuinely good, charismatic frontman who also packs a far above-average voice, the battle is already halfway won. In Dodge, Vatican Jet have that man. While he bears more than a passing resemblance to a youthful Robert Plant, his band are all about bashing out simple pop rock tunes that pick-up on that infectious Eastern European twinge that The Coral exploited in their early work, but spike it with the raw energy of bands an awful lot heavier. Although the cover of Air’s ‘Sexy Boy’ is an amusing novelty at best, the rest of the set are perfect examples of what good time rock’n’roll should be about. Dancing, shrieking and drunken abandon.
Tom Goodhand
Laura Veirs / Thao Nyugen
@ Rescue Rooms, Nottingham
Let’s face it; the day of the earnest songwriter has well and truly gone. In the place of genuine people conveying heartfelt feelings we have plastic coated emotional blackholes fixated more outrospectively to a target audience rather than introspectively to some inner turmoil or spark of inspiration. Something that Laura Veirs, and her support Thao Nyugen seems to suffer from.
Nyugen, a solo acoustic artist takes the form of the kooky female hiding a lack of quality material with pointless gimmicks. It is initially impressive to see her pluck her guitar with a toothbrush, and Thao herself is rather pleasing on the eye, but a quick watsui away from the stage and there is nothing to hold attention in her flavourless sub-folk pop meanderings.
But at least it’s flavourless. Laura Veirs’ brand of country tinged pop-rock, though sublimated well by her backing group The Tortured Souls, leaves quite a disparaging taste in the mouth. Her music is tragically MOR, in volume and variation, and yet it’s difficult to see how any mainstream popularity could be hers.
Songs such as ‘Galaxies’ and ‘Fire Snake’ tick the boxes for pleasant pace, repetitive, inoffensive and unimaginative lyrics and half-assed delivery, but there is none of the glossy sheen that is the common replacement of these attributes and for a songwriter the actual structure of her tracks are lacking.
Again it’s the case of looking at music for what it is. Subtract the American accent, and replace the expensive equipment with standards and Laura Veirs could, and most likely would, be singing in front of fifteen people in any of Nottingham’s smaller pubs instead of a nearly full four hundred capacity venue. There is no reason she shouldn’t be, surely there must be home-grown solo-talents more fitting of a good, honest stab at the mainstream?
Jordan Dowling
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