Post by Admin on Jul 19, 2011 10:50:35 GMT -5
motivesounds & Lockjaw Records presents...
Tribute To Nothing, Midasuno, SecondToLast
By Ben Maxwell
The Student Guild, Carlisle. Sunday 26th October 2003
Well this gig was meant to happen at The Brickyard, but due some circumstances that I don't understand, the 'yard pulled out and so the gig was left with no venue. Alex of SecondtoLast stepped in and took on the responsibility of finding a venue, and footing the bill for the PA and engineer. So the gig went ahead, at the Guild...
A few people (including me) were worried that the gig would suffer in this venue, but it turns out the choice was a good one, and the gig felt exactly how a real gig should, atmospheric, DIY, intimate and exclusive. It really did feel like you were witnessing something special, a gig of which to proudly, retrospectively say, “I was there...“.
So, first band up, SecondtoLast. Now, I'm coming to expect a lot from these guys, every gig I've seen so far has been amazing, and so my expectations keep rising. Yet again, they didnt disappoint...
The set kicked off with an effects driven intro, lots of delay and sounds, but straight away the PA was strained, I was worried the sound might be poor all night. It turned out just fine though, and the sound quality was in no way detrimental to any of the four bands sets. The band kicked off properly in style, bringing the ambient intro to a close and diving into a brand new song, helpfully titled [TAKES DEEP BREATH] “I Used to be With It, But What it was Back Then isnt What it is Now, What it is Now Scares & Confuses Me“ [TAKES SECOND, STRAINED DEEP BREATH]. The song is magnificent, effortlessly floating between aggression and calm, playing with time signatures and attempting some pretty complex changes. There is a great riff in the middle, sung over and layered up, which really demonstrates STL's power and talent, it is one of the best, and most interesting songs I have heard them play, and I cant wait to hear it again (If you were wondering what the abbreviation might look like... IUTBWIBWIWBTIWIINWIINSACM). They follow this with D.C., which I used to love, but in this position it serves to highlight how far STL have come, and unfortuanetly loses some of its impact. When speaking to the guitarist/singer of TTN, he said that he couldnt believe this was the same band they played with for the first time a couple of years ago. “Memories Shatter like Glass“ fixes this though, the song is simple, but works very well, then “V*I*S*A“ satiates the audiences appetite for the “hits“. What follows is perhaps my favourite STL song so far (also new), “Buildings Will Fall" is a beautiful instrumental piece that lets rip with a huge sound at points, and also plays with some interesting time changes, especially the powerful, slower ending. During this song, there were actually some serious tuning problems, but it is testament to the music that the tune wasn't spoilt in any way. “My Average Tuesday Morning Wake Up Call“ and (the usual, but incredible) “That Boy Aint Right“ brought their set to an astonishing close. Simon had terrible flu, and looked like he was going to die throughout the set, but he stuck with it and played well. The band brought their usual energy to the stage, but amazing not a single string was broken (surely a first?), in fact, I don't think anyone broke a string all night... STL got the night off to a fantastice start, and to follow after them is daunting (i speak from experience...)
But the night must continue, and Aura Sun were brave enough to step up to the mics. When I read that these guys were billed as screamo, I was a little dubious of whether I was actually going to enjoy yet another emo act, but my reservations were proved wrong. Mostly.
“The Idiot Machine“ kicked off their set with riotous energy, but somehow the band didnt seem so confident on stage (at least at first), they came off younger than they actually were. Perhaps this was just due to a new venue, but the band are on tour. The first song was good, but it didnt grab me. After this they said that they were from Somerset, and coming from Dorset I felt immediately nostalgic, and somehow better able to relate to the band (Yeah, I know thats stupid, but its how I felt). The second song (“All Hail!“) was infinitely better than the first (not because of their revelation, it simply was...), more dynamics and seemingly better played. The confidence was also building.
“Tale of a Town“ sounded a little Funeral for a Friend at points (you can decide yourself whether that is a good or bad thing...) and I began to feel that the vocals werent so strong, they seemed a little flat at points. Dont know if this was just bad monitor feed causing problems though. After that the band redeemed themselves with “Broken Circles“, a slow, powerful song with some cool time changes and a huge sound at points. The vocals were stronger in the louder parts of this song, and I started to wonder if I was just being picky.
“Autumn Always“ was a great song, which reminded me a little of Hirimeka Hifi in parts, plenty of volume too!
For the last song (“Keeper“), my notes say, “FUCKING BRILLIANT SONG, GREAT VOCALS!!“ (and yes, with two exclamation marks...), this was definitely the highlight of their set. Overall I thought Aurasun were great, and you can tell that they are going to get better. I was faced with the same dichotomy as my experience of “Funeral for a Friend“ though in that, what was played was great, but is it far enough removed from the stereotype of emo to stand out? Also, does this even matter? I guess thats up to the band and the people who buy their CDs, of which im sure there will be many.
Midasuno hail from Wales and are a stunning prospect. I didnt really know what to expect, and when “Tear“ began with a keyboard/sample that sounded like an industrial band, I was again placed in a state of dubiosity(sic). It turned out that this was the only bad point of the set...
And anyway, I think if I went back and listened again, I would change my mind about that opening...
As an opener “Tear“ was brilliant, I was immediately interested by the great use of piano (well, keyboard piano sound...) which sounded very Tori Amos. This was, o fcourse, contrasted by a powerful rock sound, which was dynamic and simultaneously raw. The band played with a huge energy (especially the bassist...), and create a powerful first impression. The song has a fantastic demented, discordant solo and a huge end. I was wondering if there was anywhere left that they could take the set without going down. They mannaged just fine though...
“Samuel. L“ really showcased the drummer as double bass drum roll after double bass drum roll cascaded into each other. Like being executed by a thousand masked gunmen. Again, there was great use of dynamics, with on/off segments, another discordant solo (albeit a short one) before the galeforce 9 thunderstorm of an ending. Brilliant.
The piano, and rolling momentum of “Continental“ conjured up some faint Paper Chase comparisons, but is followed by yet more noise and a cool build. It all goes a bit Muse for a bit in the middle, but only so much as highlighting how dull that bands use of the sound is. The song happily skips through several timing changes before stopping and then punching back with a slow, tectonic attack. After this the guitarist/singer informs us that one of their singles was recently sold on ebay for 10p. I'm sure that will rise very soon...
I couldnt get into “The Art of Fear“ so much after the last song, sometimes it sounded like they would be suitable for instore play at HMV (which is a bad thing, if you're wondering...), but there was a great sense of momentum. Just some parts of the song made me think of HMV, so its not so bad. Any anxious feelings were bulldozed by the set closer “Cut Ribbons“ which tore through the building with a huge explosive beginning. The band were great at mucking about with the audience, coming off stage to play, and making plenty of eye contact, there was plenty of charisma. The song paused just long enough for the band to get a round of applause in before breaking into a 10 ton stoner finish. The fact that this set was ended by the guitarist/singer playing his guitar with his penis, is testament to the demented brilliance of the band...
Now, I haven't seen Tribute To Nothing in a while, and the opening piano/effects intro was not what I was expecting. After all the energy expended tonight, its a tribute to something that TTN's guitars probably travelled faster, and a greater distance than any so far once they began their attack with “Silent Symbols“. The mic stand also began to travel... After a really great first song (and intro), the bass kicked in with a cool riff, leading the rest of the band into “My Decision“, in which there was some cool use of time changing and dynamics again. The band scream and power their way through the songs, always staying in time and in tune, theres a lot of charisma to be seen, but you never feel that it is tinged with any kind of arrogance or pretension (nor am I saying that any other bands did either!). The song broke down into a really pretty piano riff which the bassist played while simultaneously balancing a bass on his back. “Quicksand Mindset“ came next, and is a new song. It is fast and unrelenting at first, but does give way to some nice 'dulled' duel vocals, before kicking up a fuss again. It feels like playing a game where you only jave to fight all the bosses and not bother with the levels inbetween, build up after build up follows, short succinct and powerful. This makes the sudden drop to quiet sung subtlety all the more interesting when it comes, but this is opposed by the blattant, and HUGE ENDING (its written in capitals in my notes, so it must have been loud...). “Solution“ is begun straight away with no time for applause, some brilliant stop/start mechanics and short bass solos make this song very special. And the long muted ascent towards the end is wonderful.
At this point, a giant mouse walked in, and it is only now, three hours later, that I find myself questioning why that happened...
The next song (“Cover Story“, also a new one) was dedicated to the mouse, and began with a intro built from delayed guitars and sweet piano, lulling you into a false sense of security. As if hit over the head, sacked and thrown into a boot, the drum role and distortion come in quick succession, before you know it, the song has kidnapped you...It builds, and sways, and calms and repeats before a huge pocket of white noise hits you as the boot is opened and you are pulled out into the night air. The tension builds as the guitars cascade, before the punchy piano echoes the bullet fired by your captor. Your dead. More importantly though, one of the band mambers has lost his shoe...
No time to worry about that though, as TTN roll straight into the next song, “Crossed Out“. This really is a good song, tons of timing changes, a really great slower, quieter section and the realisation that the guitarist/singers nose is bleeding, probably from being hit in the face by the microphone he has so violently swung around the stage. This song is huge, but manages to descend back down to earth, and finish similarly with a piano melody.
They save the best till last, as “Spoken Like Code“ explodes into a fury of white noise. A gentle catchy riff follows, and the band alternate between quiet and loud to great effect. An almost lounge jazz bridge links into a huge, punchy build up and duel guitar screaming, before the drummer finishes off in style solo.
The band spend most of their time blurred, jumping around and moving too fast to follow, and the mic stand ends up behind the drummer on the floor, still in use! An amazing set from a band who get better everytime I see them, just imagine how good it will be next time...
The turnout to this gig was brilliant, a great show of appreciation for DIY gigging at its finest. Every band put on a brilliant show, and even the guild with its overly bright lighting, didnt manage to damage the evening. Everyone seemed to have a great time, and the intimacy of the venue really focussed the atmosphere. Im left wondering if this kind of atmosphere could actually be achieved in the Brickyard..?
Tribute To Nothing, Midasuno, SecondToLast
By Ben Maxwell
The Student Guild, Carlisle. Sunday 26th October 2003
Well this gig was meant to happen at The Brickyard, but due some circumstances that I don't understand, the 'yard pulled out and so the gig was left with no venue. Alex of SecondtoLast stepped in and took on the responsibility of finding a venue, and footing the bill for the PA and engineer. So the gig went ahead, at the Guild...
A few people (including me) were worried that the gig would suffer in this venue, but it turns out the choice was a good one, and the gig felt exactly how a real gig should, atmospheric, DIY, intimate and exclusive. It really did feel like you were witnessing something special, a gig of which to proudly, retrospectively say, “I was there...“.
So, first band up, SecondtoLast. Now, I'm coming to expect a lot from these guys, every gig I've seen so far has been amazing, and so my expectations keep rising. Yet again, they didnt disappoint...
The set kicked off with an effects driven intro, lots of delay and sounds, but straight away the PA was strained, I was worried the sound might be poor all night. It turned out just fine though, and the sound quality was in no way detrimental to any of the four bands sets. The band kicked off properly in style, bringing the ambient intro to a close and diving into a brand new song, helpfully titled [TAKES DEEP BREATH] “I Used to be With It, But What it was Back Then isnt What it is Now, What it is Now Scares & Confuses Me“ [TAKES SECOND, STRAINED DEEP BREATH]. The song is magnificent, effortlessly floating between aggression and calm, playing with time signatures and attempting some pretty complex changes. There is a great riff in the middle, sung over and layered up, which really demonstrates STL's power and talent, it is one of the best, and most interesting songs I have heard them play, and I cant wait to hear it again (If you were wondering what the abbreviation might look like... IUTBWIBWIWBTIWIINWIINSACM). They follow this with D.C., which I used to love, but in this position it serves to highlight how far STL have come, and unfortuanetly loses some of its impact. When speaking to the guitarist/singer of TTN, he said that he couldnt believe this was the same band they played with for the first time a couple of years ago. “Memories Shatter like Glass“ fixes this though, the song is simple, but works very well, then “V*I*S*A“ satiates the audiences appetite for the “hits“. What follows is perhaps my favourite STL song so far (also new), “Buildings Will Fall" is a beautiful instrumental piece that lets rip with a huge sound at points, and also plays with some interesting time changes, especially the powerful, slower ending. During this song, there were actually some serious tuning problems, but it is testament to the music that the tune wasn't spoilt in any way. “My Average Tuesday Morning Wake Up Call“ and (the usual, but incredible) “That Boy Aint Right“ brought their set to an astonishing close. Simon had terrible flu, and looked like he was going to die throughout the set, but he stuck with it and played well. The band brought their usual energy to the stage, but amazing not a single string was broken (surely a first?), in fact, I don't think anyone broke a string all night... STL got the night off to a fantastice start, and to follow after them is daunting (i speak from experience...)
But the night must continue, and Aura Sun were brave enough to step up to the mics. When I read that these guys were billed as screamo, I was a little dubious of whether I was actually going to enjoy yet another emo act, but my reservations were proved wrong. Mostly.
“The Idiot Machine“ kicked off their set with riotous energy, but somehow the band didnt seem so confident on stage (at least at first), they came off younger than they actually were. Perhaps this was just due to a new venue, but the band are on tour. The first song was good, but it didnt grab me. After this they said that they were from Somerset, and coming from Dorset I felt immediately nostalgic, and somehow better able to relate to the band (Yeah, I know thats stupid, but its how I felt). The second song (“All Hail!“) was infinitely better than the first (not because of their revelation, it simply was...), more dynamics and seemingly better played. The confidence was also building.
“Tale of a Town“ sounded a little Funeral for a Friend at points (you can decide yourself whether that is a good or bad thing...) and I began to feel that the vocals werent so strong, they seemed a little flat at points. Dont know if this was just bad monitor feed causing problems though. After that the band redeemed themselves with “Broken Circles“, a slow, powerful song with some cool time changes and a huge sound at points. The vocals were stronger in the louder parts of this song, and I started to wonder if I was just being picky.
“Autumn Always“ was a great song, which reminded me a little of Hirimeka Hifi in parts, plenty of volume too!
For the last song (“Keeper“), my notes say, “FUCKING BRILLIANT SONG, GREAT VOCALS!!“ (and yes, with two exclamation marks...), this was definitely the highlight of their set. Overall I thought Aurasun were great, and you can tell that they are going to get better. I was faced with the same dichotomy as my experience of “Funeral for a Friend“ though in that, what was played was great, but is it far enough removed from the stereotype of emo to stand out? Also, does this even matter? I guess thats up to the band and the people who buy their CDs, of which im sure there will be many.
Midasuno hail from Wales and are a stunning prospect. I didnt really know what to expect, and when “Tear“ began with a keyboard/sample that sounded like an industrial band, I was again placed in a state of dubiosity(sic). It turned out that this was the only bad point of the set...
And anyway, I think if I went back and listened again, I would change my mind about that opening...
As an opener “Tear“ was brilliant, I was immediately interested by the great use of piano (well, keyboard piano sound...) which sounded very Tori Amos. This was, o fcourse, contrasted by a powerful rock sound, which was dynamic and simultaneously raw. The band played with a huge energy (especially the bassist...), and create a powerful first impression. The song has a fantastic demented, discordant solo and a huge end. I was wondering if there was anywhere left that they could take the set without going down. They mannaged just fine though...
“Samuel. L“ really showcased the drummer as double bass drum roll after double bass drum roll cascaded into each other. Like being executed by a thousand masked gunmen. Again, there was great use of dynamics, with on/off segments, another discordant solo (albeit a short one) before the galeforce 9 thunderstorm of an ending. Brilliant.
The piano, and rolling momentum of “Continental“ conjured up some faint Paper Chase comparisons, but is followed by yet more noise and a cool build. It all goes a bit Muse for a bit in the middle, but only so much as highlighting how dull that bands use of the sound is. The song happily skips through several timing changes before stopping and then punching back with a slow, tectonic attack. After this the guitarist/singer informs us that one of their singles was recently sold on ebay for 10p. I'm sure that will rise very soon...
I couldnt get into “The Art of Fear“ so much after the last song, sometimes it sounded like they would be suitable for instore play at HMV (which is a bad thing, if you're wondering...), but there was a great sense of momentum. Just some parts of the song made me think of HMV, so its not so bad. Any anxious feelings were bulldozed by the set closer “Cut Ribbons“ which tore through the building with a huge explosive beginning. The band were great at mucking about with the audience, coming off stage to play, and making plenty of eye contact, there was plenty of charisma. The song paused just long enough for the band to get a round of applause in before breaking into a 10 ton stoner finish. The fact that this set was ended by the guitarist/singer playing his guitar with his penis, is testament to the demented brilliance of the band...
Now, I haven't seen Tribute To Nothing in a while, and the opening piano/effects intro was not what I was expecting. After all the energy expended tonight, its a tribute to something that TTN's guitars probably travelled faster, and a greater distance than any so far once they began their attack with “Silent Symbols“. The mic stand also began to travel... After a really great first song (and intro), the bass kicked in with a cool riff, leading the rest of the band into “My Decision“, in which there was some cool use of time changing and dynamics again. The band scream and power their way through the songs, always staying in time and in tune, theres a lot of charisma to be seen, but you never feel that it is tinged with any kind of arrogance or pretension (nor am I saying that any other bands did either!). The song broke down into a really pretty piano riff which the bassist played while simultaneously balancing a bass on his back. “Quicksand Mindset“ came next, and is a new song. It is fast and unrelenting at first, but does give way to some nice 'dulled' duel vocals, before kicking up a fuss again. It feels like playing a game where you only jave to fight all the bosses and not bother with the levels inbetween, build up after build up follows, short succinct and powerful. This makes the sudden drop to quiet sung subtlety all the more interesting when it comes, but this is opposed by the blattant, and HUGE ENDING (its written in capitals in my notes, so it must have been loud...). “Solution“ is begun straight away with no time for applause, some brilliant stop/start mechanics and short bass solos make this song very special. And the long muted ascent towards the end is wonderful.
At this point, a giant mouse walked in, and it is only now, three hours later, that I find myself questioning why that happened...
The next song (“Cover Story“, also a new one) was dedicated to the mouse, and began with a intro built from delayed guitars and sweet piano, lulling you into a false sense of security. As if hit over the head, sacked and thrown into a boot, the drum role and distortion come in quick succession, before you know it, the song has kidnapped you...It builds, and sways, and calms and repeats before a huge pocket of white noise hits you as the boot is opened and you are pulled out into the night air. The tension builds as the guitars cascade, before the punchy piano echoes the bullet fired by your captor. Your dead. More importantly though, one of the band mambers has lost his shoe...
No time to worry about that though, as TTN roll straight into the next song, “Crossed Out“. This really is a good song, tons of timing changes, a really great slower, quieter section and the realisation that the guitarist/singers nose is bleeding, probably from being hit in the face by the microphone he has so violently swung around the stage. This song is huge, but manages to descend back down to earth, and finish similarly with a piano melody.
They save the best till last, as “Spoken Like Code“ explodes into a fury of white noise. A gentle catchy riff follows, and the band alternate between quiet and loud to great effect. An almost lounge jazz bridge links into a huge, punchy build up and duel guitar screaming, before the drummer finishes off in style solo.
The band spend most of their time blurred, jumping around and moving too fast to follow, and the mic stand ends up behind the drummer on the floor, still in use! An amazing set from a band who get better everytime I see them, just imagine how good it will be next time...
The turnout to this gig was brilliant, a great show of appreciation for DIY gigging at its finest. Every band put on a brilliant show, and even the guild with its overly bright lighting, didnt manage to damage the evening. Everyone seemed to have a great time, and the intimacy of the venue really focussed the atmosphere. Im left wondering if this kind of atmosphere could actually be achieved in the Brickyard..?