Welcome once more to Kamikaze's! club 444...surely the only thing in the world that isn't going up in price? Budget schmudget. We're all going to hell in a handcart. Ha! Happily Strangetime or StRANGEtIME to do it all proper like, would make a rather good soundtrack to our journey bowelwards. Lead StRANGE Kate Finch posses the greatest yelp since Lene Lovich informed us that her lucky number was one...or was it two...? Ahhh t'was all so long ago. There's a hint of Hazel O'Connor in there and, for younger readers, a bit of Be Your Own Pet and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs too. I really enjoyed their set, in particular a short spikey little ditty that may have been called 'Why Do You Bother'...which I'm thinking of adopting as my theme tune. I loved the fact that, when they were told they only had time for one more track, they cunningly melted one into another so they could squeeze two in. That shows a band that wants to get places. Bravo.
Next up The Joe Fox Band, fronted by Joe Fox, brother of page 3 stunna Sam. No, I'm making shit up now. He isn't. Well I don't think he is. She wasn't there. Maybe they'd had a row? Anyway, the music, driving foot to the floor rock with a heavy dose of -abilly (that's rockabilly then), Mr Fox has a belter of a voice that, in places, recalls the lungtastic Mr Noddy of Slade. It all works best on the belters like Cold Sweats and Shake Your Death Rattle too...I kept wanting them all to have giant quiffs though (have a listen and see what I mean). We want quiffs. There aren't enough quiffs in music...apart from Quiff Richard obviously (see what I did there...?). And Jimmy Quiff. (I'll stop now).
Signed to the ultra cool Shifty Disco label, My Device (pictured) sound like two slightly drunk blokes having an arguement about The Ramones and XTC...in a cupboard. Which is a good thing, obviously. I'm particularly liking Fountain Of Youth and Rusty Trombone. Listening again there's a bit of Captain Beefheart/Zappa-ish nuttyness in there too. They're the perfect Artrocker band, clever (without being pretentious), a bit off the wall and all in all really rather darned fine. All together now, who's your favourite Mexican...'Super Tonio!'
Last up, grunge rocksters The Indigos. Melding Nirvana and QOTSA riffs with post punk social commentry (and a dash of psych for good measure) the put on a impressively energetic closing set. The New Wave-y 'In The Red' (with that really catchy guitar bit) and the Mark E. Smith meets Kurt Cobain track 'Play' in particular stood out. They're playing London's Met Bar (oooh swanky) on the 20th March and it seems they did a mini tour of the Czech Republic last year. You don't get many bands touring the Czech Republic do you? Come to think of it I've never heard of a band from the Czech Republic either...apart from Chubby Czech-er (see you thought the Quiff stuff was a fluke eh?).
Ciao.
X
I was there, I saw it all. First place was a tie between My Device and StRANGEtIME. They were both awesome. I'm going to write a strongly worded letter telling them to play together again, maybe form a supergroup.
ReplyDeleteBx.
Thanks Badass,
ReplyDeleteWise words. StRANGEdEVICE it is then.
The Baron (who also has a badass...but that's down to his age)