Post by Admin on Jul 19, 2011 9:22:35 GMT -5
Motive Sounds presents -
FUNERAL FOR A FRIEND, SECOND TO LAST, RELUCTANT TO SPEAK
By Ben Maxwell
The Brickyard, Carlisle. 12th July 2003
DISCLAIMER/WARNING: AN OPINION...
This was one of the busiest (rock) gigs I've seen at the Brickyard, a good crowd and (mostly) great music.
I was expecting Reluctant to Speak to explode into noise the moment they got on stage, but they suprised me by starting with a quite melody. As always when this approach is taken, the crowds' mutterings gradually died down as they took notice, it's a great way to start a gig. Of course, the quiet was just the calm before the storm, and before long Reluctant to Speak blasted forth with their metal onslaught.
A few songs in, and they were joined on stage by a jester, introduced by a suitably bouncy/comedy riff, but which soon turned into a really quite good dual vocal track, loud and fast, and pretty tech. This was slightly spoiled, in my mind at least, by the repeat of the jester introduction riff at the end, but thats no great problem.
The set continued from there seemingly getting heavier with each new track, but was over before I even knew it, which is a great; there's nothing worse than an overblown set. Reluctant to Speak had great stage presence and got the crowd to sit up and take notice early on, although, without wishing to undermine that achievement, this was helped greatly by an apparently very receptive crowd. A great start all round then.
Now there's no point in hiding it, along with Ketamine and My Last Act of Bravado, Second to Last are one of my favourite local bands, and I was really looking forward to their set...
...they didn't dissapoint, but, in opposition to some over exuberant posting on forums ("yeah, that was your best set. EVER!!!!"), I have seen them play better. Second to Last were seemingly cursed as they went on, with all sorts of stuff going wrong. None of it was their fault though, which is frustrating, but I suppose sometimes that just happens (I've just realised that this actually sounds quite negative, but it's not, It's just best to end with the good stuff...).
I wonder if there will ever be a guitar/bass string created that can withstand the full force of a Second to Last set? As usual, casualties were taken in the first song, bass and guitar losing strings as Second to Last put on their usual standard of performance. I am always really impressed at the bands ability to carry on using alternative strings, if you weren't watching you'd never notice the difference, if it happened to me I'd panic...
For some reason the vocal mics weren't picking up much unless in really close proximity, so the vocal levels kept fluctuating. It's really irritating when that happens, you can't help but try to hear the words, only to have your efforts foiled by the last line fading out of audible range.
Second to Last ran through all their usual songs with aplomb, although a couple of times there were some tuning problems, and in general the sound was not very clear, this wasn't their fault though). Of course, I can't help myself wanting the end to come, not because I want it to finish, just that I want to hear those two songs.
I don't know the name of either of them but as the second to la...no, penultimate song kicks in every problem during the gig fades into insignificance, a truly amazing song, slow building and instrumental with a fantastic off-kilter drum beat.
This is then topped by their last song, starting perhaps more like the other Second to Last songs, but then building into a huge, uplifting soundscape. It's a testament to the quality of Second to Last that they played such a good set regarless of the problems facing them. Brilliant.
By the end of that, I couldn't wait for Funeral for A Friend. I didn't know any of their stuff (I bought the EP as pre-gig research and still haven't listened to it...), but was looking forward anyway. Now, this is going to upset most of the attending audience, but I was actually quite dissapointed. It's not that Funeral for A Friend were bad, far from it, they played a great set, to a very appreciative audience. It's just that I've heard it all before, those very same emo chords, that exact pitch and style of singing (albeit with a regional twang...), and I have to say I'm pretty fed up of the emo-metal scene.
Before anyone pipes up "but Second To Last are emo", I'd like to justify myself. Second To Last are really trying something more exiting, they blend in far more influences, and although some audible comparisons could be drawn on the night, Second To Last were much more interesting. Funeral for A Friend's set was better when they leant more towards their metal side, some great riffs, and a couple of truly heavy moments. All in all, they're very good at what they do, and they put on a great show for the 'yarders, I just don't like what they do.
I don't believe in condensing, or summarising a gig into a number out of ten, hence the absence of scores.
FUNERAL FOR A FRIEND, SECOND TO LAST, RELUCTANT TO SPEAK
By Ben Maxwell
The Brickyard, Carlisle. 12th July 2003
DISCLAIMER/WARNING: AN OPINION...
This was one of the busiest (rock) gigs I've seen at the Brickyard, a good crowd and (mostly) great music.
I was expecting Reluctant to Speak to explode into noise the moment they got on stage, but they suprised me by starting with a quite melody. As always when this approach is taken, the crowds' mutterings gradually died down as they took notice, it's a great way to start a gig. Of course, the quiet was just the calm before the storm, and before long Reluctant to Speak blasted forth with their metal onslaught.
A few songs in, and they were joined on stage by a jester, introduced by a suitably bouncy/comedy riff, but which soon turned into a really quite good dual vocal track, loud and fast, and pretty tech. This was slightly spoiled, in my mind at least, by the repeat of the jester introduction riff at the end, but thats no great problem.
The set continued from there seemingly getting heavier with each new track, but was over before I even knew it, which is a great; there's nothing worse than an overblown set. Reluctant to Speak had great stage presence and got the crowd to sit up and take notice early on, although, without wishing to undermine that achievement, this was helped greatly by an apparently very receptive crowd. A great start all round then.
Now there's no point in hiding it, along with Ketamine and My Last Act of Bravado, Second to Last are one of my favourite local bands, and I was really looking forward to their set...
...they didn't dissapoint, but, in opposition to some over exuberant posting on forums ("yeah, that was your best set. EVER!!!!"), I have seen them play better. Second to Last were seemingly cursed as they went on, with all sorts of stuff going wrong. None of it was their fault though, which is frustrating, but I suppose sometimes that just happens (I've just realised that this actually sounds quite negative, but it's not, It's just best to end with the good stuff...).
I wonder if there will ever be a guitar/bass string created that can withstand the full force of a Second to Last set? As usual, casualties were taken in the first song, bass and guitar losing strings as Second to Last put on their usual standard of performance. I am always really impressed at the bands ability to carry on using alternative strings, if you weren't watching you'd never notice the difference, if it happened to me I'd panic...
For some reason the vocal mics weren't picking up much unless in really close proximity, so the vocal levels kept fluctuating. It's really irritating when that happens, you can't help but try to hear the words, only to have your efforts foiled by the last line fading out of audible range.
Second to Last ran through all their usual songs with aplomb, although a couple of times there were some tuning problems, and in general the sound was not very clear, this wasn't their fault though). Of course, I can't help myself wanting the end to come, not because I want it to finish, just that I want to hear those two songs.
I don't know the name of either of them but as the second to la...no, penultimate song kicks in every problem during the gig fades into insignificance, a truly amazing song, slow building and instrumental with a fantastic off-kilter drum beat.
This is then topped by their last song, starting perhaps more like the other Second to Last songs, but then building into a huge, uplifting soundscape. It's a testament to the quality of Second to Last that they played such a good set regarless of the problems facing them. Brilliant.
By the end of that, I couldn't wait for Funeral for A Friend. I didn't know any of their stuff (I bought the EP as pre-gig research and still haven't listened to it...), but was looking forward anyway. Now, this is going to upset most of the attending audience, but I was actually quite dissapointed. It's not that Funeral for A Friend were bad, far from it, they played a great set, to a very appreciative audience. It's just that I've heard it all before, those very same emo chords, that exact pitch and style of singing (albeit with a regional twang...), and I have to say I'm pretty fed up of the emo-metal scene.
Before anyone pipes up "but Second To Last are emo", I'd like to justify myself. Second To Last are really trying something more exiting, they blend in far more influences, and although some audible comparisons could be drawn on the night, Second To Last were much more interesting. Funeral for A Friend's set was better when they leant more towards their metal side, some great riffs, and a couple of truly heavy moments. All in all, they're very good at what they do, and they put on a great show for the 'yarders, I just don't like what they do.
I don't believe in condensing, or summarising a gig into a number out of ten, hence the absence of scores.