ABOVE THEM
Above Them are a band based firmly in the mid-90s. They merge pop-punk from back when the production was sparse and vocals helped distinguish between bands rather than cloud the issue, and emo from a time when the genre still existed in it's intended incarnation. They also manage to confirm my belief that bands of their ilk need no more than one guitarist if that guitarist is worth his salt and no one in this band is being carried. With intricate guitar work sitting beside riffs, one of their songs opening with an excellent bass solo and top drumming throughout, this band deserve more than to fade towards the last few songs of their set. If they can manage to stay together long enough in this UK scene that seems to see good bands break up on a weekly basis to get an album made then they could well have enough songs to gain the credit that they deserve.
http://www.myspace.com/abovethem
FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! PHOTOGRAPHY
This is my fourth Flash! Flash! Flash! Photography (or 3FP as they prefer it to be shortened to) gig and it is probably their worst in my opinion. The sound is a little off, you can't hear the lead vocals for a large proportion of the gig apart from when Mike Hemsley screams his throat raw, and the band doesn't quite seem as up for it as they have previously. But, in all fairness, the last point can be put down to the early start and the relatively low amount of alcohol consumed by both the crowd and them at this point. But it too is very easy to forget that this is only their fourth ever gig. So you can't hear the lead vocals? I'm sure that they'll sort out the mic levels soon. It's easy enough. The sound's a little off? Well that's not their fault.
Looking at what this band manage to achieve is a far fairer way to review them. The song that manages to get the biggest response is their cover of 'Black Or White', but this is not only down to it being the one song that people recognise, but because they've managed to make it into one of the best cover songs that I have ever heard. Plus they fucking slay it. They can write songs too though. 'Aqua man' is their potential 'hit' and it hits like Enter Shikari if they were good. It is certain to get lodged inside your brain like a pop parasite. And the reworked intro to 'Make Like A Tree And Get Out Of Here' is a massive behemoth of rock that far exceeds what should be expected of a band this early in their infancy. With breakdowns, rapping, screaming, three-way vocals, ska-like bass lines, and a whole load more, 3FP manage to avoid the pothole of wackiness and instead use these elements as a heady arsenal with which to choose where to take their songs, and that excites me.
Without having any songs recorded it is difficult to entice people that don't know the band personally to take the time to familiarise themselves with them, but they should and will once songs hit their myspace later this year. I honestly feel that 3FP have the potential to create some of the most interesting and enjoyable music you'll hear in 2008 and I recommend that you go and see them on tour. You're guaranteed to see five guys having the times of their lives and you'll leave with an unshakable smile on your face. Especially if they sort out the mic levels.
http://www.myspace.com/flashflashflashphotography
THE ATTIKA STATE
Try and place The Attika State into a genre and you'll struggle. Prog-pop-punk? Riff-heavy-indie? Post-rock-with-hooks? Their myspace says: 'Rock/ Experimental/ Indie', but don't believe them. They're all of the best bits from your favourite bands and more.
Ripping through a set that comprises of the entirety of their debut ep released last year, 'Leave Your Dignity At The Door', it feels more like a greatest hits set. The band are obviously very comfortable with their songs and this gives them a polished feel that only knowing them inside out can give you. Lead singer, Rodolfo, who set his mic-stand on the floor in front of the stage and spent the gig there rather than actually onstage, turns his back on the crowd whenever he isn't singing and dances with the crowd and you wonder if he must look like an enthusiastic punter amongst other enthusaistic punters to the rest of the band. If the songs themselves weren't good enough (they kind of sound like what The Academy Is... would sell their souls to sound like) they are thoroughly charming and funny guys between songs too, which just completes the package.
The elusive nature with regards to what genre they'd fit it into is not the main attraction. The main attraction is that whatever genres they might not fall into, they're definitely pop and as people throw their fists towards the ceiling in unison and belt the lyrics back at them with such passion it's as though the band have a fourth vocalist, I can't help but wish that I knew the lyrics too so that I could be involved in this. On the basis of this performance I'll be listening to the ep enough in the near future to be singing along next time.
http://www.myspace.com/theattikastate
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