Two bands that blend punk and desert rock influences seamlessly!
The lesson that we take away from tonight’s gig is that The Bass Guitar Is Possessed And Must Be Exorcised. At least, we think that’s what both bands’ bassists are trying to do with their instruments; thrashing, thumping and generally giving them merry hell throughout their sets. Hey, we’re not complaining – it makes for some thrilling performances and great songs too.
We certainly won’t forget Bones Ate Arfa in a hurry. Shortly after their set begins, their drummer takes a wander into the crowd to play his cowbell unaccompanied; it turns out to be the calm before the storm, before another barrage of huge riffs blasted out with pure punk rock velocity. One of their songs sounds a bit like the evil cousin of the Foo Fighters’ ‘Times Like These’, but this trio have much more in common with Dave Grohl’s former band.
Towards the end of their set, I badly need to pee, but the likes of ‘Akimbo People’ and the closing ‘It’s All Good’ are way too good to miss, and hence my bladder’s pain proves to be my ears’ gain. They’re playing a free gig at London’s Old Blue Last on 8th December – join us if you can, and you won;’t be disappointed.
Mind you, if it’s truly thunderous, bass-driven riffs you’re after, then Dead Air are your men for the job. Seriously, we’re talking ones that the giants of desert rock (yep, QOTSA, Kyuss, Fu Manchu et al) would probably kick themselves for not having written. The faster and louder they go, the more devastating the impact, so it’s no great surprise when a mid-set blast through ‘Do It For The Pay’ ignites a frenzied pit into action.
Onstage, things aren’t any more sedate; vocalist/bassist Reuben remains a sweat-drenched whirlwind of energy, and he’s got seriously heavyweight back-up in his bandmates’ powerhouse drumming and nimble-fingered guitar work. Since we last saw them, the trio have released a couple of ace new tracks in ‘Black Flag’ and ‘Fast Food World’ and they finish with the latter, taking no prisoners in the process.
You get the feeling that venues this small won’t be enough to contain Dead Air for much longer, and we’d love to see them take on an Academy-size stage. The start of something big? With performances like tonight’s, we wouldn’t bet against it.
All Photos: ALEX GOOSE
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I spend my days teaching English to foreign students, and my evenings attending as many gigs as possible. Raised mainly on a diet of 90s third-wave punk, my tastes have grown to include just about anything from trad ska to thrash metal. The Ramones are my musical gods.
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