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Review by Explode
(Photos Courtesy of Dod) |
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So to another night of punk rock
abandon at Drummond's (courtesy of those nice chaps at GFN Promotions).
I arrived just as Crashdown were starting their set. I’ve seen them
several times before and just can’t take to them. Tonight was no
exception. Never ones to let a good tune get in the way of another
unnecessary tempo change or an opportunity to show off with some OTT
fret wankery, their polite pleas for people to dance fell on deaf ears.
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The same didn’t apply to The Hijacks. Their high-tempo melodic ska-core
got heads bobbing and feet tapping from the off. These guys get better
every time I see them. Their three way vocals and infectious hooks
reminds me vaguely of Against All Authority or someone of that ilk, but
like I say the comparison is vague. These guys have their own style and
are a joy to watch, bouncing all over the stage and always looking like
they’re having the time of their lives.
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Asian Man head honcho Mike Park was up next giving us a solo acoustic
set that included a Billy Bragg cover and material from his former band
The
Chinkees. Deciding that the amplified sound onstage was too loud, Mike
unplugged his guitar and
came down from the stage to give us the second half of the set in a
more intimate manner as he stood shoulder to shoulder amongst the crowd
playing unplugged. A nice touch.
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Finally Classics of Love took to the stage and, despite various
setbacks (broken guitar, borrowed guitar, broken strings), proceeded to
tear Drummond's apart. Jesse Michaels was at pains to let us know that
it wasn’t HIS show, that it was a band in the true sense of the word.
And so it proved to be as Mike Huguenor and Morgan Herrell played their
instruments and delivered their backing vocal harmonies to perfection.
At times there was a hint of Fugazi, at times a hint of The Briefs and
on one track, a huge nod to the hardcore of the Bad Brains. Jesse
claimed
he was struggling with a cold but there was no indication of that as he
dispensed with is guitar and bounced
all round the Drummond's stage, even leaping from atop the PA stack at
one point. Bags of energy. The short set was based around the material
on their current six track EP, the standout on the night for me being
Slow Car Crash. Perhaps inevitably, the set closed with a breakneck run
through Operation Ivy classic The Crowd that saw a mass outbreak of
moshing and even the rare sight of crowd surfing at Drummond's!
Of course, after this the crowd was baying for more as they unplugged
their guitars but, being such a new band, they didn’t have any more
songs left to play. I hope they return when they do.
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