24 October 2007 (gig)
31 October 2007
The problem with post rock is it needs to be constantly inventive to keep our attention. The quiet-quiet-loud soundscapes, always alluring at first, can quickly become the same hackneyed terrain. Kontakte do manage to keep things interesting, with peaks and troughs and a few vertical drops to mix things up a bit.
The same can’t be said of Air Formation, who were the very definition of a moaning guitar band in the worst possible sense. Dull, dull and dull.
Asobi Seksu were an hour late and had technical difficulties before they started. The crowd were polite but restless. The anticipation slowly began seeping into the air and formed clammy patches on palms. More fiddling with cables. More twiddling with switches and replacing of machines. Ready? Not yet. Press this button, turn this down. Ok, let’s go.
According to Wikipedia, shoegazing refers to motionless bands that stare only at their feet. If Asobi Seksu are shoegazing, then the shoes they are gazing at belong to a platoon of punk fairies, dancing in the spaces between the stage. Fairies dressed in pink with heavy eyeliner and Doc Martins using rocket boosters jet packs, drinking lots of Red Bull. They simply launched an almighty blast of sound that blew away any pre-gig tension with an invisible force of abandon.
Lead singer Yuki’s cute/sad voice rides the wave of Hanna’s turbulent guitar. The songs are backed by the relentless manic beating of Shapiro on drums, striking his kit like he intends to break it every time. In fact the whole band (even the guy on bass who I don’t know the name of) seems intent on stretching their talent to fill the enormous sound they create, swelling up like a massive tidal wave, building higher and higher before overwhelming everyone.
As you know, Asobi Seksu means 'playful sex’. If this was them when they feel playful, then I’d be scared to see them when they’re serious.
