Questions in my mind ahead of this one that I'm struggling to answer; for a band with so much exposure/whipped up hype (mostly from career makers and breakers NME) how come they can't sell out the Anson Rooms on a Thursday night? Are we all wearing rose-tinted specs? Are they actually any good? Is Bristol still apathetic to indie? It's a head scratcher alright after this incendiary 50 minute performance proves to those who were there that the Worcester quartet are one of the few shining lights in British rock.
Throwing together elements of psychedelia, baggy and Brit-pop; the group nominated for countless ‘Sound of 2013’ polls arrive in Bristol on what must surely be their last tour of recorded live debut album ‘In Love’. Whilst they’re often compared to other trendy hipster types Foals, Maccabbees and Vampire Weekend the group is actually fronted by a chap with a decent level of rock’n’roll charisma. Oft bizarrely-dressed Harry Koisser cuts a Jagger-esque figure on-stage adorned in a hatched two-tone shirt last seen wall-papering a yuppie flat in 1987. It’s been a far from peaceful year for the group The Guardian has hailed as the ‘future of indie’ with a whole heap of festival slots, an opening slot on the NME Awards Tour and perhaps some disproportionate gushing from the long-standing magazine.
After opener ‘Waste Of Paint’ throws it’s shifty indie-disco Happy Monday’s weight around, its fair to suggest we’re not hearing anything new but of course we’re in 2013 not 1989 and there’s a whole new generation of indie kids yearning for their own Hacienda experience. ‘Follow Baby’ invokes some crowd-surfing whilst other Koisser brother Samuel (bass) lays down a grungy groove to be layered over by a cacophony of wonky guitar brought into line by a smooth falsetto harmony. Organised chaos during the funky breaks on ‘Drain’ which sees some wild bubbling tropical guitar licks alongside some impressively stretching yet tight vocals. “If you’re not happy wearing denim, you’re a devil in disguise” is the call on ‘Float On Forever’ – a definite anthem that sounds like Gaz Coombes has replaced Damon Albarn in Blur circa ‘The Great Escape.’
The equally catchy ‘Lovesick’ ought to be a monster hit with a chorus that would have cleaned up in ’95 as would ‘Toxic’ which despite yet more of Doug Castle’s aggro wonky guitar can’t hide it’s pop sensibilities. There’s little time for banter as the band rattle off nearly all of the debut and a couple of EP tracks including a delightfully ear-splitting and visually blinding ‘1998’. No cute choruses here, just an adrenalin packed wall of sound, breathless and devastating (think ‘Blow Out’ from Radiohead’s ‘Pablo Honey’). They leave to a deservedly loud ovation in what was short, sweet and just superb from start to finish. Will the NME turn on them as they often do post-debut album? Maybe. Or maybe these are the first strides towards the top from a band happy to describe themselves as creating ‘music to grind, roll and smoke / music to fuck you in the heart.’
Kindly published by www.bristol24-7.com
http://www.bristol247.com/2013/12/18/review-peace-at-anson-rooms-bristol-40666/
Setlist:
1. Waste Of Paint
2. Follow Baby
3. Higher Than The Sun
4. Drain
5. Float On Forever
6. Lovesick
7. Money
8. Toxic
9. Wraith
10. 1998
11. California Daze
12. Bloodshake
Best track: Click on link below
Peace - 'Lovesick'
Buy album here:
No comments:
Post a Comment