I'd been looking forward to seeing Farewell Singapore for weeks, now hoping I wasn't going to be disappointed, while I'd not seen 3 Times Over for months and also hoping the same thing. I'd never hesard of Linos Chase Tigers Before, so hadn't a clue about them. As things turned out, no-one disappointed - far from it...
In fact, the evening opened with three tracks from a really young band who, I guess, were kind of "cutting their teeth" in front of a live audience. They were called "We Were Posiedon" and sounded pretty decent. Unafraid to keep things moving throughout, they inhabited a kind of jazzy version of melodic centred indie rock. The arrangements are varied, even hints of Dundee's The Floor at times with hot guitar runs that are more jazzy than dense as the guitar chimes out. The tracks twist and turn, often to quite a degree, while the band are difficult to pin down, although the sheer tightness and strength of playing at least show that the band is consistent, cohesive and quite worth watching.
So, here we go...... along come Edinburgh's Farewell Singapore and I was probably the most excited person in the huge audience that turned out for the 3 Times Over EP launch gig. Suddenly this echoed guitar is heard and shortly joined by a deep rumble of bass as this wondrous female vocal glides over the backdrop, joined by harmony vocals from the two male singers (on guitar and bass respectively) as this song slowly unfolds, totally spellbinding. From this intro of exquisite delicacy and depth, the band explode - in a blaze of hard-hitting guitar riffing then, with a sudden crunch of drums, the gloves are off and we're into "Tim Burton". The accentuated gorgeousness of the vocal flies out on a track with such an infectious quality to it, only here, compared with the recorded version, such energy and power as the band drives it all forward. The second track opens with a solid flare from the band as powerful bass and that soaring female vocal come straight from the heart. Through twists and paces, the track veritably stomps along as the vocals fly, before it then rages into intensity and the band piledrives its presence, veering between hard riffing and beautifully chiming guitar. It then moves into this slow section where the voice wafts strongly over the crunching drums, deep bass and delicate guitar. Track three, introduced as a new song, stomps right from the start as thr vocal flies over chunky beats and heavy bass, only to open out then decelerate, then intensify as a memorable chorus sails from the PA on what is a jaw-droppingly fantastic song. There's such a powerful arrangement and a storming chorus, while, mid-song, there's an instrumnetal hammer blow before the riffs kick in, the guitar drives out and another chorus steams into view. Fourth song starts once again with echoed guitar and thick bass before the power button is pressed and trhe band go headlong into a solid stormer of a track with a huge instrumental density of sound. When the vocal enters, it's to such dynaMIC effwect, you're virtually left breathless beholding it all, as another great song powwers ahead. Finally, there's "Blue", a "song about Scotland", opening with delicate guitar, ballad-style vocal, all slow and wonderful - then - blattttt!!!!! - chiming guitar, solid bass, chunky drums and flying vocals all convey the song with such emotion that you're absolutely captivated by the whole experience. It intensifies to a hook-laden chorus as the band and vocalist surge upwards. The song then drops back to earth before hammering down with a solar flare of guitar, bass and srums, ending as only the finest of anthems should, with wondrous vocal performance. A truly awesome band - in many ways like a less pop, more intense, heavier answer to Perth/Dundee band Hello Pirates? and I have to say I'd pay good money to see both of those bands on the same line-up, that's for sure - and judging by the reception they got tonight as an "unknown" band, a fair few others would, too.
I was told that Lions Chase Tigers were from Glasgow. They began as a dynamic contrast, the (male) vocals almost deliberately restrained above chunky drums and singing guitar before they put the pedal down and explode in slow motion, the strong verses leading into even stronger harmony-filled chorus. The pace is realtively slow as guitar sparks out and it's back to another verse, sung so strongly and with such emotion. The song then erupts once more, slightly faster, eventually expanding into this flowing finale of solid band playing, repeated harmony hooks, as the guitarist adds tension before it all just stops - superb!!
The second track succeeds in similar kind of way as the band climb and fall like a rollercoaster, over which this distinctive hushed strrngth vocal weaves its magic on the song. The third track opens with dual guitar chorus as the band thunder in and a more urgent song with an extended intro, blazes out at a strident mid-pace in a torrent of guitars and inspirational vocals. They are who exude atmosphere, even on tghe heavier sections and, for such deliberately arranged tracks, they've got real presence. The song builds up a head of steam that intensifies and, as you expect it to explode, it defies your expectations by ending magnificently. Fourth track in, and it's a taut vocal over native drumming, deep distant bass thud and even more distant guitar, all extremely hypnotic as the vocal takes control, the guitar strats to drive as the rhythm section continue onwards. As the first part of the song ends, the drums thunder into part two where the vocal lifts off and the band slowly forge a path of deliberate clarity, stregthening, building, intensifying as repeated harmonies are cyclical hooks and the effect is truly mesmerising. On the fifth track, comes the explosion as the band power out only to drop back down as a buzz-saw guitar riff under emotive vocal before it all erupts once more. The chorus is huge, repeated and intense with an underlying warmth to the energy. The band's final track starts with another explosion as another supercharged intro drives ahead, drops back momentarily to thunderous delicacy before climbing, then surging ahead as the vocals fly above the molten heat of the band. It's all about one red hot band and the effect they create - a heart and soul in a cualdron of sound, with vocals of such hypnotic distinction, you can't failed to be sucked in to their amazingly unique indie-music world.
To top all of this, the lead band were gonna have to be good - very good!! As it turned out, 3 Times Over rose to the challenge and just blazed a trail of intensity you could have probably felt, the other side of Dundee. Right from the start, the four of them switched on the power button. The vocals surge out, the dyanmics of the band's playing is immediately jaw-dropping, while vocal harmonies top it all off as this anthem of a song opens wide and the sound of the two duelling guitars, erupts into your consciousness. Through fire and finesse, the guitars ring out as the crashing drums and floor-shaking bass propel it all. Then the song heads into a territory of spacey guitar as thudding drums and whispered hook turn into this huge sounding dual harmony hook and massive, band-driven sound. That the band now possess real structure, purpose and direction is beyond doubt, yet they've not sacrificed one jot of the two blazing guitars, together and apart, as the song remains true, a testament to the band's solid arrangements. With a bouncing lurch over which two chiming guitars head in different directions, the second song powers out over hammering rhythms. It drives into a depth-filled hook delivered with real emotion as a chunky riff ensnares you before the guitars fly out at angles as the song surges and twists. Seriously well written and arranged, the tight playing and dramatic rhythm provide a new song - "off the next EP" - that's absolutely fantastic. It's lengthy but justifies every second by never staying still and harnessing a nuclear energy and excitement with huge sounding guitars, blazing the trail. With a textural keyboard intro, track three reveals a bluesy vocal holler over bouncy beats as the rest of the band take up the same rhythm, then explode as the guitar wails then drops before the basnd lift it all once again and the song is delivered by two vocals powering out over the attack. Via a brief drop in intensity, the song takes on a new coat as it lurches ahead with authority. The guitars are shattering chords as the riffs develop and the drums drive ahead, solid yet dynamic, open ended and supercharged, a bit similar to the Scottish band Healthy Minds Collapse at their most fiery, only more varied and denser. TRack four opens with a stabbing thunder of an intro as the guitars light up in a very controlled way, the song becoming a bluesy swagger as higher vocal lifts off over the slowly moving mass. Via widdly guitar chords, an instrumental break provides an intensity of swirling guitar chords, positively psychedelic, as the band get heavier and power out with vocals at the heart of the blazing sun, full of emotion and equal intensity. Another hammer blow of an intro moves quickly into the fifth song, mesmerising by virtue of its sheer electrifying energy, moving into a clean, fast metal guitar riff as the band thunders towards just the guitar before lurching into clipped rhythms as the second guitar heads off at a tangent. Then the band burns and stomps as guitars sheer off, only to find their way back to the main body of the song. Sixth song is slower but the guitar work is stunning - chimes, splinters, takes off, together and apart, with the rhythm section holding it all together. The song intensifies and energizes as the density increases to reveal a real anthem of a track before it all explodes, yet out of the holocaust, remains the anthem of a song, dynamic and full of feeling. There's a nuclear powered finale in a controlled fallout of ringing guitar work. The last song erupts and hammers, vocals delivering another great song with emotive riffs, searing guitars as the band achieves meltdown and the song flows hazily. Then, in a sea of guitar chords, it goes into the sound of delicate, chiming guitars and deep bass as the hushed vocals are intoned. As you might expect, the song then takes off like a rocket as the bass divebombs the audience, the drums threaten the foundations and the guitars are hotter than Hades, as those strong and stirring vocals fly out above it all, in another amazing anthemic fashion, the whole thing burning with the intensity of a solar flare before abruptly coming to a halt. It's been one wild, intense ride yet here is a band breaking the mould of indie fashionability while blazing a trail where structure, songwriting and strength are key figures in a burning cauldron of guitars-driven sound with their own seas of melodies at the core.