Barfly Xmas Celebration (20/12/07)

Published by Al Young | Filed under Music

Ah, Digbeth at 7PM on the evening of many people’s Christmas work’s parties: never before had I seen such lewd behaviour from the supposedly reputable professionals; though I will not be so disgusted as not to admit that watching those who would otherwise be determined to prove their superiority to you publicly relieving themselves is one of the most gratifying visions possible. The main worry here is that their nights were only just starting; as was mine. The weather set the scene perfectly: it was the very sum total of every pre-gig cliché; with sub-zero temperatures and an ever ongoing threat of rain (which was, luckily, not to materialise) serving to consistently put an element of doubt into my mind as to whether being freezing and wet would be worth seeing four local bands, only one of whose music I had previously heard. As it transpired, the Shoot, Panda!?, Likely Lads, MAYDAY! and RiotNight Barfly Christmas party would indeed be worth this potential discomfort.

The night would start with a performance from Shoot, Panda!?, a fledgling Birmingham band close to my heart due to my personal knowledge of its members. In spite of this inherent bias, I can honestly say that their performance was indeed one of magnificence: stage presence of vivaciousness and instrumental ability far beyond that of their years and classical training. Whilst the classic indie traits of pretence and self-indulgence are present in their songs, the sheer interest that their songs can attract, as well as the feelings of euphoria that their songs can bring on in anyone with a soul, means that this doesn’t matter: you will dance, no matter how much you fight the urge. Their blend of dance and indie is really that infectious, and is only bolstered by their youth. The only negative comment that can be made about this performance is the slight tendency of the one guitarist to dance in an Ian Curtis-esque manner; and he’s not even epileptic.

With a slight delay for the removal/addition of equipment from/to the stage, The Likely Lads were the next band to play. Sounding like a mixture of Oasis and Arctic Monkeys with a hint of The Clash and similar punk-era bands, an air of security in what their next song is going to sound like is never really available; not to say that their set was not consistent. It was: it really was. They mix the tried-and-tested elements of all of their influences, but add little flairs of their own to make their sound unquestionably their own. A mix of grit and brighter themes in their music also keeps you on edge throughout their set; these lads are definitely not ones for predictability. The relatively static performance of their vocalist with no attempt to hide his accent was a breath of fresh air: it was an earnest, honest and ‘real’ performance; and drew attention towards him amidst the rhythmical gesturings of his bandmates. This contrast enriched their act most wonderfully.

When MAYDAY! came to play, I could not get the image of The Mars Volta out of my mind. This may well have been partly to do with the fact that their guitarist did indeed look like Cedric Bixler of the aforementioned band, but their opening song Gorpse hinted towards a playful experimentation and vocal eccentricity which I would expect from such a band. The introduction of a keyboard also made an interesting diversion from the guitar-guitar-bass-drum dynamic that had been so solidly set up by the previous bands: variety is indeed the spice of life. There was such an electricity between the band members on stage it was almost frightening: they were by far the tightest band of the night, with not a single note or beat out of place to my ears at least. Musical nods towards the likes of We Are Scientists, whilst apparent, were not detrimental: it was clear that they had made a concerted effort to sound like themselves, but just taking advice from those which could be considered peers in their field: what they do is not emulation, but rather creation.

In a departure from the other musical styles of the night, RiotNight’s influences seemed to stem from more classic rock bands, such as Status Quo, The Beatles and Guns ‘n’ Roses (as strange as that combination may sound) as well as the likes of more modern bands such as Oasis and even Travis. A dirty, overdriven guitar tone on the likes of Alive points to this classic rock influence, but songs like Roll On point to this Oasis-era influence. It really is an interesting combination to see, but it is far from alien and does indeed work quite well. By far, RiotNight had the best stage show of the night; with their guitarists, vocalist and bassist moving in an almost choreographed manner, all in beautiful synchronicity with the music. It’s just a shame that the venue had almost emptied following the MAYDAY! set; some people missed some great music from an interesting live band.

In all honesty, dripping and freezing would have been payment I would have more than willingly handed over for this night: talent is usually such an abstract and rare quality; this night was luckily enough to have four bands reeking of mainstream promise and critical praise. I await the day that I read the names of these bands in the music press; that day will most definitely come.

Photos of Shoot Panda!? in the full version of the article.