kALEL + PEG & THE BOUFFANTS + THE WHITE LIGHT + PAGE 6 + THE DAZE + THE TRADE - Town Hall, Kirriemuir 01-03-08
Now it's not often that you get concerts featuring four bands that you know and love, performing together on the same night, but to have one with six such bands on - well..... yer main hope is that they all play to their potential - do so and you're guaranteed a great gig, drop a brick, and it waters it down somewhat.
So, in the gradually filling vastness that is the large, square, open, empty space that is Kirrie Town Hall, on a stage that could fit an equipment truck let alone the band inside it, with a PA capable of bringing down small passing aircraft supplied by the guys at Audio Wave, with the ever reliable Mitch on sound duties, it fell to Kalel to open the proceedings. Kalel are one of the brightest hopes on the new band stakes to come out of Dundee of late. Led by ex-Rising Signs vocalist/guitarist Frankie, theirs is a set which succeeds by virtue of a variety of seemingly disparate pieces, all fitting together and making this whole that is truly something special. They mix a kind of Beatle-esque songwriting, with a rock rhythm section and a psychdelicised lead guitarist, toped by a singer who is strong and provides extra depth on rhythm guitar - in essence, and forgive the comparison, if The Law are "Sergeant Pepper", Kalel are "The White Album" - get my drift?
Well, they are coming on in leaps and bounds. The sound was incredibly loud and, initially, the guitarists and Frankie's vocal were having to fight the rhythm section thunder than work with it, but by the second song, they'd got it right and what ensued was a well balanced set of songs that twisted and turned, providing that mix of something commercial allied to something that really kept your attention, allied to something that rocked. Mark's guitar work is the epiitome of restraint, or rather, knowing when to use texture, when to riff and when to solo, ensuring that the lead breaks really counted while the textural qualities, riffs or refrains, really counted above the solid chording from Frankie's rhythm guitar. The rhythm section positively thundered, even on the more indie-pop parts, but it really is the songs and Frankie's delivery that sets the seal on a band that, on this showing, wil sound every bit as good as an album band, as they do live. Once they've got something recorded and you can get those songs really into your head, THEN things should really start to get interesting!
Ah yes - Peg & The Bouffants! Certainly one of the most unique bands on the whole Dundee Scene right now, if not in the whole UK!! Fronted by their two female lead singers, the ever statuesque Janine and the ultra-cool Kirsty, they play a brew that encompasses pop, rock, punk and ska, yet their foundations are a kind of rap-jazz blitzkrieg with potent commercial potential. Tonight, with a wide stage to go at, they elected to open up with an sizzling instrumental, led by Callum's sax work and what a great idea as the sound really allowed the sax to come shining through, gave a flavour of what the band can deliver and allowed the appearance of the ladies to be much more visually dynamic, when it happened. Surprisingly, to me anyway, they opened with the frenzy of "Scenester", which, while it allowed the girls the opportunity to get to grips with the power that was coming from the band out of that PA, is not a track I'd say was an obvious opener. That said, they certainly made their presence felt as the ladies exchanged vocals and spat forth harmonies to relay the observational lyric with real attitude. The tone of the set laid down, they went on to perform a number of engaging songs, with Janine seeming to take most of the lead vocal role tonight, while Kirsty really made the harmonies count, even though, at times, she had to fight to be heard above the volume. Both can sing and deliver the goods, but when it's at this volume, it doesn't quite come across as smoothly as you'd like. But with Callum's sax and guitar clearly more in evidence, the rhythm section firing out this solid surge of power and "Peg" kind of controlling and channelling things on the guitar, they gave a spirited performance that won over a lot of the first-time audience, so much so that by the time it came down to the finale of their new ska number - a track soooooooooo radio friendly, it's got "hit" written all over it and led by Kirsty's addictive lead vocal - much of the crowd were leaping about. Janine had previously given a seriously powerful lead vocal to "Not That Kind Of Girl" (I think that's the title, without checking) and wiggled the best ass in the business at the goggle-eyed crowd, while the dual vocals on the choruses proved a real adrenaline surge. It's fun, it sticks in your head and, while it was a bit raucous turned up this loud, it's a great idea that, with constant refining and the ladies singing & not having to shout, will produce rewards, for sure.
Forfar's The White Light were up next and yet another completely different yet totally complementary band provided a spark of a set. This is a band that rocks - theirs is a brew of heady indie intensity that you can't readily categorise and yet which has an appeal that's wide and far. Immediately, the pace and whole flavour of the evening was turned on its head as they took the stage and simply roared into action, the rhythm section hammering home while the guitarists riffed and rolled as the vocals flew out of the speakers. Yet, far from letting loose with all guns blazing right from the start, they sensibly let it all build, gradually becoming ever more powerful as the set rolls on, so much so that the initial reaction to stand there and take it all in, is replaced by a want to sway from side to side and ultimately topped with the urge to leap about as the roll of "I Am You" coarses into the rock of "Skin 'n' Bones" and the band inexorably turn up the heat across a performance that glowed red hot throughout. The sheer mix of vocal emotive passion and urgent, almost breaking-point, singing, allied to some remarkably tight arrangements and a general set of songs that leave their mark in a more direct commercial sense, signifies what a tightly knit unit this band really is.
Page 6 followed. Theirs is one of THE most remarkable success stories on the whole Dundee Scene in the last two years - from potential success to double winners of Emergenza's "Battle Of The Bands" through restructuring hiatus and reinvention, to emerge a newly refreshed band with a 100% remarkable new set and 200% confidence, they then record and release a top quality album that sells by the truckload and rise to the top of the Dundee tree, all on their own, all without a label or manager, deserves nothing but praise no matter what music you're into. Then we do come to the music itself - totally unique (yet again) on the Dundee Scene, their brew of highly potent, quality songwriting in a supercharged funk-rock groove, with an uncanny ability to produce songs that are immediate yet long-lasting treasures, makes them the sort of band that have got to the stage where they can light up the lives of any audience they play in front of - and this is exactly what happened tonight. Almost in a class of their own, they steamed through a set of songs, familiar and new, from the pop potential of "Antics" through to the nuclear funk and dynamic variation of "Walter's Ego", they had the whole audience dancing. With Ryan really taking command of that stage and dancing like a dervish on heat, delivering a superb vocal that really fits the songs to perfection, the band let lose with clarity and quality, managing the sound to provide a solid, quality set. The bassist is a powerhouse of blistering funk - even to the extent that on one song, at several points, all he does is literally slap the strings with his thumb yet produces a chord of such emotive power, you can but wonder how he manages it. All in all, as exciting and consistent a set from a band that can surely do no wrong from here on in - the skies the limit!!
Hard to follow? Not for The Daze, it isn't!! With their position as, arguably, the best new band on the scene in the last 12 months when it comes to indie guitar-fuelled songwriting and inventive arranging that fulfills all you could want from a guitars-driven quartet, they were out to keep the audience hooked after the solid Page 6 set and, that they did exactly that, is a testament to their all-round talent. Plugged in and turned on, they immediately launched into the rousing set opener "Young, Free and Easy", drummer Rab laying down this booming foundation as Ciaran, stage right as we were looking at it, saunters around looking ever the cool dude as he produced this sea of thundering bass, leaving lead guitarist Scott at stage left, hunched over the guitar and pouring out this gorgeously solid set of chiming guitar riffery as vocalist and rhythm guitarist Robbie sings a rousing song with a sort of in-tune, hoarse passion that fits the song like a glove. A perfect way to start the set, it immediately set the seal on the way things were gonna go, as the audience lapped it up and started to dance. By the time we got to the insanely catchy and thoroughly addictive song that is the complete verse, hok, chorus, riff and rhythm that is "All The Same", the entire place was leaping about as the band could just do no wrong and proved that you can make indie music danceable, that you can make commercial songs so solid and that you can make something so instant leave you wanting to hear and experience it all, over and over and over again. It was magical stuff and more uplifting than a jet engine. New song "You'll Never See That Day" proved that this band can roar like a lion as another part of their arsenal, the song surging into life with the power and potency of a mix of classic Oasis and early Tom Petty, ther urgent vocals underpinned by a raging torrent of guitars, cast iron bass and rock solid drumming, the soaring chorus taking hold and refusing to let go. If all that isn't enough, the band then show that they can really take you places that no other band dare to go with the - tonight, somewhat shortened - epic that is "New Day Dawning", the rolling drumming tumbling down like boulders as bass flowed and the guitars flared, Robbie's mix of languidity, yearning, passion and intensity of vocal, bringing this huge swathe of emotion to the track, as it undulates, flows, twists, turns and, ultimately spirals upwards on a sea of guitar density and rhythmic wonderment. All proof positive that this band is still stunning and the best is still to come.
So, to the headliners - Forfar's own The Trade, fresh from appearing in the national finals of a Battle of The Bands competition in Manchester, fired up with desire and totally concerned with making an impression, something they, too, pulled off as they had the crowd on their side from the start. Although probably, in songwriting terms, the most complex band on the set, they nevertheless played the set with an incredible intensity, vocalist Ross really letting go from start to finish, as he gave a performance that, no matter what the structure of the song, made you sit up and take notice. Largely sticking wtih the more urgent, surging sides of the band, they provided tracks new and familiar, including one new track driven by this amazing jungle drumming as the whole thing erupted into life and really caught the attention. Even the ballad turned into a rocker as the guitar work from Liam and Craig sounded full, expansive hard and dynamic, the band
clearly feeding off the energy of the audience and coming back with a powerful blend of songs. For The Trade, what works here is their drive and variety, so that while no two songs sound the same, there's still an undercurrent of familiarity and immediacy which makes you glued to what they do. As I wasn't as familiar with the majority of the songs as the rest of the crowd, it was the sheer enthusiasm and strength with which they played, that made them worthy headliners. However, with an anthem such as "The Dealer" that will see them through their days, a timeless and upwardly surging an indie corker if ever there was one, this band finished the evening in a manner that was similar to the way it had begun with Kalel, with songs that needed attention and work from the audience for maximum impact.
But, taken overall, this was a solid, consistent and highly engaging set of bands who really delivered the goods when it counted, pleased a large-ish audience and made their presence firmly felt.