Solabeat Alliance, Norwich Waterfront
*Note: This gig took place at the Arts Centre in Norwich*
Man I felt old at this gig. GRAVELTRAP opened proceedings, and I had never heard anything by them before. I came away impressed to an extent, since while they played with a lot of passion and managed to win over a crowd that’s usually indifferent at best to opening acts, there seemed to be little variation in their set. They did attempt a “darker punk rock” style for the penultimate song, which sounded like a more upbeat Alkaline Trio, but for some reason this seemed to lose the crowd (probably because it wasn’t as instant gratification as the rest of their set). I think that they deserve a (6) because they were in no way bad, but didn’t try and push any boundaries.
I was looking forward to MIXTWITCH because they really did make an impact on me when I saw them at the Golfing On The Moon tour. I’m not sure why, but this must have been an off night, because there was something not quite right about them. I can’t fault the band as performers, making a real effort to engage with the crowd, and they played a good mix of old and new songs along with their quality cover of Ronan Keating’s “When You Say Nothing At All”. It’s just that I think the sound was a little muddy at times, and while this was obviously not the fault of the band, they didn’t grab me as much as they did the first time I saw them. Mixtwitch can be fantastically good fun live, but on this occasion there was something missing. (6)
But to be fair, any band on the same bill as SOLABEAT ALLIANCE is going to have to work pretty damn hard in order to keep up. It’s well known that I pretty much adore this band and tonight marked my first exposure to new material since the two new tracks on the Rise On Up EP. They weren’t at full strength, as various uni exams meant that the brass section was somewhat depleted, but a temporary trumpet player provided just the right stuff to compliment John’s exemplary shape-throwing. Kicking off with ‘Set It Off’, a mix of chunky punk rock and ska lines the crowd instantly absorbed the SA energy and bounded around like loons throughout the whole set. Paul and Joe kept the riffs pounding out, and a quite fantastically buoyant ‘Tongue Tied’ (one of the greatest ska punk songs ever) from the first album sat perfectly alongside the new material.
One of the new songs was a laid-back reggae number, which seemed to lose the crowd a bit – probably due to the fickle nature of the under-11s. But it showed a maturity and technical impressiveness about the band that had been evident in smaller doses throughout their older material. The other new song was just brilliant, a recognisably SA-esque mix of crunching riffs, chirpy and summery brass lines and Ollie’s frankly machinelike (ie damn, damn good) drumming. Tim knows how to work the crowd like a true showman, and during the set he never once forsook the opportunity to thank the entire crowd (after the set he and the rest of the band were the model of friendliness and approachability). ‘Summer Nights’ got the whole room singing and jumping, and all too soon the band’s set was cut short. I know I’ve been going on about this band for ages, but they really do have the potential and ability to go places. I just can’t wait to hear the new stuff. (9) and only inches away from a (10)
Ben
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