Went to the Fox and Firkin in Lewisham last Tuesday night. I was supposed to be going there with Wooj, Arnold, Harvey and Hasty but Haste had to bail out because, frankly, Lewisham is a total twat of a place to get to from deepest SW London/north Surrey. We were heading there to see Hans's current band Neoentity play.
In the middle of the day Hans had told us that it looked like they were starting at 1930, but since none of us could get there that early he said he'd try and get 'em held off until 2000. We got there at about 1955 and the headliners were soundchecking.
Then Neoentity soundchecked.
Then the openers (Second Class Stamp) soundchecked.
The gig didn't start until 2100 or so, maybe even 2130. Damn it! Given what we thought was happening originally I'd said to Hasty that once Hans's mob were done I'd nip back to God's own quarter of London for a couple of jars, but that was totally blown out by this.
Talking of blown out, Second Class Stamp didn't have much luck. During their soundcheck the vocalist/guitarist guy's amp fucked up, the overdrive circuit blew IIRC, so he had no sound to speak of. So when they came to start their set they were a guitar down, and by the end of the first song the remaining guitarist -- perhaps trying a bit too hard to beef up the sound on his own? -- had snapped a string. To top it all off, they were SHIT. I appreciate it was a trying evening but frankly the vocals were toss and the songs unoriginal and boring. Half the time I thought they were about to launch into a cover of something or other, such was the startling familiarity of their riffs. The best thing about Second Class Stamp was the bird giving out free CDs of their 3 track demo/EP afterwards. Not 'cos I wanted the CD or to ever listen to them ever again, but because I got a jewel case for a CD.
Oh, also, what kind of band plays with the vocalist not in the centre of the stage? He was stood on the left (as we faced it). That's totally wrong. C'uh.
Neoentity, on the other hand, were large. A part of me is probably saying that because of knowing Hans, but then again Hans is a great bassist and the songs were, I reckon, objectively good. Some of them worked well without vocals, some less so. The ones that did work OK were coincidentally the ones where the keyboards didn't sound rubbish, where they acted as a pretty decent alternative. It's difficult to imagine that they actually need a keyboard player when they have got someone singing, though.
Unless, that is, they let me be their manager and implement all the changes I was discussing with Gabi and the others beforehand. Primarily it would involve putting a fancy curtain over the front of the keyboards, down to the floor, and dressing the keyboardist in a proper magician outfit. Then periodically throughout the set he could produce doves and bouquets of flowers and shit from beneath his instrument, and at the end he could hide behind it while Hans yanks the curtain away and WHOOSH! He's gone! Neoentity: next stop, Vegas.
All in all though, as I say, Neoentity were good. They sound like a metal version of Ozric Tentacles, except for in one song where they sound like they're covering Metallica's One. And, of course, they have "a myspace", like everyone else. What with playing in rock and metal bands being mainly the preserve of people keen to express their individuality, full of youthful angst and rebellion and sticking-it-manwards attitude, it's great that everyone now just sets up near-identical websites-by-numbers on a system owned by Rupert Murdoch. Jumping into bed with News International (home to Fox!) -- that'll teach society not to fuck around! Yeah!
Didn't bother staying for the headliners that night. It was almost 2300 by the time Neoentity had finished anyway!
Hmm. The picture accompanying this entry is of Necroritual, who I saw on Saturday night but can't be arsed talking much about just yet because, being at work, I have to stop blogging and get down to business. ie, go play table tennis.
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