The balloons are up! We’ve completed our anniversary interview with the promoters, and soundchecks are nailed. It’s time to press go and start this all-day celebration of the 100th milestone gig by Leeds’ post-everything tastemakers Bad Owl Presents.
Patience
Leeds locals Patience kick off proceedings today with twinkling, soaring rock in all the best ways, with turn of the century emo vibes and a proclivity to drift into shoegaze lushness. There’s enough post hardcore grunt here to stop it from being too pretty. It’s a solid opening with emotional heft and lots of musical dexterity and those leads definitely tug on your heartstrings. Prior to I Wish, we’re told that we’re getting heavier stuff now and those post hardcore even metalcore vibes start coming forward almost reminding us of the likes of Kite Thief in places. A promising start for a promising band!
Death Rituals
Death Rituals are astonishingly playing their first gig ever, but it certainly doesn’t feel that way. They enter with awesome skittering, post hardcore vibes and effect laden guitars interplaying with keyboards over exemplary drumming. The members of this band have plenty of experience between them with members of Envoy and A Headless Horse noticeably present and locked in. They tell us, “None of our songs have names, we’re not on Spotify and we have no merch, but you can have our phone numbers if you like?” Before retreating because it sounded a bit creepy. There’s a lot of quality on show not least from a very talented rhythm section that brings to mind the awesome Pleiades. We’re pretty sure Death Rituals have all the quality needed to be a name we’ll hear a lot more of.
KKETT
Stewart of Bad Owl tells us this band are very entertaining and mathy so we’re taking our position near the front in the hopes of some dynamic music and shots to match. It’s also the first time we’ve seen a twin bass attack since we last saw Neds Atomic Dustbin, so let’s go! What follows is a glorious kaleidoscope of sounds all delivered with the energy of a child high on E Numbers which is fitting since we’re told that the name KKETT is inspired by what they call sweets in Northumberland (where the band are from) five minutes in we’ve already had hand clapping exercises and slut drops and a song about, “milk and the internet” Fabulous stuff! Three vocals, two basses, a synth and occasional metal meets carnival music vibes into math rock, it’s that kind of set. If there was another kind of set to compare this to, maybe Primus jamming with The Callous Daoboys, Rolo Tomassi and Enter Shikari at a disco, maybe? Songs about Giraffes? Why not! 2 K’s and 2 TT’s and one E because apparently that’s all you need. That’s KKETT!
What? Nah
After KKETT have just assaulted us in the best possible, What? Nah, are a far more restrained prospect also with multiple part vocals but these are harmonising and back up with wind instruments. Slightly mathy in flavour with awesome drumming from a drummer who clearly knows his vintage drum breaks. Oboes and saxophones are played through multi layered effects and the overall effect is very pleasant indeed and reminds me more of mid-nineties drum and bass in places especially the output of 4Hero and their ilk. It’s a professional tight performance that will appeal to lovers of a prettier shade of musical recreation.
IRK
Making pretty music however is not something IRK do and tonight we are acutely aware of how funky their output is. The first time we encountered this most unconventional of three pieces (Bass, Drums, Vocals with a lot of effects) the onstage/offstage concept was the most striking thing about them as their vocalist performs on the floor in the crowd whilst the rhythm section stays onstage. The second time round you realise they actually do have funky, danceable songs even though they can be about toothache in prison or insects or something completely different. Once again IRK is a joy to witness and is the most fun we’ve had since, well…KKETT’s performance a couple of hours ago actually. Proud weirdos should make their way to an IRK gig straight away. The microphone stand gag is less funny the second time but we still chuckled and we’re still not giving it away.
La Rissa
Next up, it wouldn’t be a Leeds show without something a little gothic and from Leeds! La Rissa are ostensibly a dark wave act but rhythmically a lot more rooted in dance music which makes for a fantastic blend that’s as upbeat as it is mysterious. Fans of Health will find a lot to love here but also fans of Massive Attack too. As fans of the dark arts this change in mood is very welcome and La Rissa’s modern take on retro styles that never go out of fashion is just the tonic at this point in proceedings. La Rissa bow out with Eat The Rich a track that resonates particularly well this close to a general election especially in this venue.
Trigger Thumb
Trigger Thumb hair from Bradford and are described as a mixture of System Of A Down and Muse. This is their first show in four years we’re told and judging by the fact they’ve been practicing scales for the last hour I’m expecting virtuosity! Well we can happily report two tracks in that we have received all of the above and much more! Trigger Thumb are fantastically crazy and have a lot more going in their music than I expected, this is quite a potent brew of funk, metal, jazz and tight as hell playing with just enough abstraction to save it from just being music for musicians. Lots of attitude and contrast and quirkiness that sometimes even recalls the weirder end of Periphery’s output or when Incubus actually wrote challenging music (remember that?) Once again it’s fantastic fun and expertly programmed into today’s running order by Bad Owl, as ever.
Mums
Widnes noise rockers Mums have the final spot here today and have vintage tone dialed in! On Any Old Iron they channel their best Hives yeeeeeahs! To great effect. This is stripped back raw noise rock and it’s fuzzy and fantastic. Bent Legs introduces itself mysteriously before thundering down slabs of dense power chords and harmonies not unlike the kind you’d hear from Queens Of The Stone Age. It’s that kind of vintage desert rock tone that provides the bed for this band, that and full force drumming that could give Animal from The Muppets a run for his money. Special shout out to whoever has been waiting for cheers to die down before audibly saying, “That was really good.” All day. It is quite funny we have to say as far as complimentary heckles go.
Today has been a fitting eclectic celebration of the finest promoters in Leeds and arguably the north in our opinion. Stewart and Kerry, we salute you! Here’s to another 100!
Review & Photography By George Miller – https://www.facebook.com/oneflamemedia
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Patience
Death Rituals
KKETT
What? Nah
IRK
La Rissa
Trigger Thumb
Mums
