At The Empire
Boy Kill Boy, then. We've had our reservations in the past and even now we still consider them the purveyors of what is essentially indie pop. They'll probably agree with that, though. They're not about backwards time signatures or frantic rhythms, they just wanna write songs that people will enjoy. We've got no problem with that here although, obviously, we are essentially geared towards music that breaks the mould. However, last night, they were headlining the NME tour and by george did they do themselves a credit. As headliners they perhaps had it all in their favour but they weren't blasé about it and I think I broke a rib down at the front there. Certainly I had trouble breathing and or speaking for the rest of the night.
Second on the bill were The Automatic another band about whom we've been in two minds. However, last single Monster got us thinking that they may be ones to watch. Again, indie pop is the order of the day but a more angular frenetic kind, a la We Are Scientists (who, until The Automatic, I don't think the UK had a real answer to). Second on the bill they were and yet after a quiet, very warm up-y Long Blondes showing, they were incedinary. Romping around the stage like men possessed throwing all the right shapes and generally looking the part they sounded. We were very impressed and moreover the songs of theirs we hadn't heard sounded very much like they could all be singles.
I didn't catch all of The Long Blondes, I took the opportunity to go to the bar in time to make my way all the way to the front of the next acts (sorry, normally I hate that but they had a pretty good crowd so, I didn't feel so bad). It is worth nothing about the other three acts, though, is that there were no ballads. My word, what a plus.
This may seem obvious but it's more than blind prejudice. The show fully belonged, for me, to ¡Forward, Russia!. Again, only three singles to play so not a Greatest Hits set but even the new stuff jerked and spasmed with all the their best so far. I tried to get them to play One but, no joy (one two three four five! one two three four five!). What they did play, though, from their Monday released Give Me The Wall, was sheer class. Cut and twisted, run through a blender and just machine gunned at the audience. I'm pretty sure they converted a whole bunch of the people around me and after a slow start (even though they kicked off with a single) they had the crowd bouncing to their choppy rhythms. I think I lost my voice a record three times to their set.
It was a very special thing boys and girls and I recommend it to you highly.
Second on the bill were The Automatic another band about whom we've been in two minds. However, last single Monster got us thinking that they may be ones to watch. Again, indie pop is the order of the day but a more angular frenetic kind, a la We Are Scientists (who, until The Automatic, I don't think the UK had a real answer to). Second on the bill they were and yet after a quiet, very warm up-y Long Blondes showing, they were incedinary. Romping around the stage like men possessed throwing all the right shapes and generally looking the part they sounded. We were very impressed and moreover the songs of theirs we hadn't heard sounded very much like they could all be singles.
I didn't catch all of The Long Blondes, I took the opportunity to go to the bar in time to make my way all the way to the front of the next acts (sorry, normally I hate that but they had a pretty good crowd so, I didn't feel so bad). It is worth nothing about the other three acts, though, is that there were no ballads. My word, what a plus.
This may seem obvious but it's more than blind prejudice. The show fully belonged, for me, to ¡Forward, Russia!. Again, only three singles to play so not a Greatest Hits set but even the new stuff jerked and spasmed with all the their best so far. I tried to get them to play One but, no joy (one two three four five! one two three four five!). What they did play, though, from their Monday released Give Me The Wall, was sheer class. Cut and twisted, run through a blender and just machine gunned at the audience. I'm pretty sure they converted a whole bunch of the people around me and after a slow start (even though they kicked off with a single) they had the crowd bouncing to their choppy rhythms. I think I lost my voice a record three times to their set.
It was a very special thing boys and girls and I recommend it to you highly.