Plus Collisions, The Deal Was For The Diamond and 55th Flotilla.
Music with no guitars? Music to actually dance to? Music driven by computers and stuff? NO GUITARS!! You may think it’s an idea so crazy it could only be the dream of two mad scientist brothers, perhaps with a penchant for adapting nautical equipment for use in creating such music, and who also happen to live on a houseboat in the shape of a decommissioned 1960’s minesweeper. You’d be right of course. Meet 55th Flotilla. All of the above and more. Tonight, in Brighton’s Audio venue, they played a mix of Techno / Dubstep / Drum n’ Bass and other electro genres… perhaps not what the regular Pure Rawk reader might usually listen to but it was live, had plenty of energy, and although their music may not include guitars that certainly didn’t mean there was a lack of power. The use of a ship’s wheel as a sound controller provided a good visual element too. It was just one of several wired up pieces of seaworthy equipment to adorn the stage and this ensured you wouldn’t be bored just watching two guys working their laptops. More and more electro elements are finding their way into the rock genres these days. Those of you embracing this, and whose musical tastes spread wider than pure guitar based sounds, will find much to appreciate watching these guys.
To restore the musical balance, however, the next band was thedealwasforthediamond. Here was a band who really knew how to ramp up the intensity with a stunning twin guitar, bass and drum workout and not a single laptop in sight. No vocals either! Without a singer the front and centre role was taken by bass player Alistair Scott and what seemed like a huge array of effect pedals. It’s a brave move keeping things instrumental but with playing this strong who needs a front-man getting in the way?! Progressive (at times psychedelic) rock is the order of the day here but where many bands in the genre over-complicate their sound thedealwasforthediamond left enough space in their riffing for a serious amount of groove too. Stand out tracks included ‘For My Sins’, ‘Home’ and final song ‘The Brain’. With an album already recorded and awaiting release early next year this is a band to look out for. Awesome.
So far tonight the crowd had been treated firstly to pure electronica dance beats and then to a full-on guitar assault. The perfect blend of both of these could be heard in the drum n bass / metal crossover stylings of main support band Collisions. Back on home turf in front of a familiar crowd the band confidently showed how far they had progressed as a live act after a successful year which had seen them touring Europe and the UK extensively.
With ‘Believe In This’ reaching number 8 in the Scuzz TV video chart earlier this year it was no surprise that it got one of the biggest cheers of their set. Newly released single ‘Push’ also went down particularly well and it’s a song that looks set to strengthen their growing reputation. Vocalist Olly Simmons took charge of the stage while ‘Spud’ (bass) and Andy Trewin (guitar) spent most of their time jumping, head banging, and just generally ‘giving it some’! Of course, every great band has a great drummer and they have a real gem in Will Chapman who charismatically provided the power behind, around and in between the samples. Finishing on the ridiculously catchy ‘Once Weary Eyes’ another well executed gig came to an end and we were left thinking there’s an album’s worth of good stuff there. Hopefully it won’t be too long in the making.
Speaking of great drummers they don’t come much better than progressive groove metal band Monument’s very own Mike Malyan. He also happens to be the live drummer for tonight’s headliner The Algorithm – the Basick Records signed French producer Remi Gallego. This was one of those ‘wow moments’. Armed with a laptop, mixing desk and drumkit, the duo proceeded to teach and then reinvent all you had come to understand about the metal and electronica genres.
‘Logic Bomb’ and ‘Trojans’ (both from the latest album ‘Polymorphic Code’) were particular highlights and the cover of Daft Punk’s ‘Harder Better Faster Stronger’ showed how it should have been done. Sublime, mesmerizing, and nothing short of a musical masterclass. Witness it for yourself and prepare to be stunned. It was that good.
Pictures and words by Greig Clifford.
