So Cow, New Amusement and more at HWCH (night 3) Review Snapshot: A rained soaked Dublin played host to the final night of this year’s HWCH. The night’s lineup was, to look at, the wea...

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One Day International, Mackerel the Cat and Others at HWCH (Sunday)

Review Snapshot: Despite dreary drizzle, HWCH made it through the night with stunning, passionate performances by both established acts and newcomers to the scene. 

The Cluas Verdict? 8 out of 10

Full Review:
It was not an evening to leave the house. Horror movie rain beat down in all its forms - spitty rain, drizzly rain, monsoon rain, torrential rain, showery rain, Dublin-here-I-come rain. But I braved it. Left the house. Hopped on a 38. Having originally planned to see geek rockers 'We Are the Physics' at Meeting House Square, I instead opted for the warmth of The Button Factory and the sounds of Mackerel the Cat. Love of the name (which is taken from a Haruki Marukami novel) was enough to sway me towards their breed of indie ambience. They had so much potential, incorporating a multitude of fancy-schmancy instruments like the glockenspiel and the double bass, and even a guitarist using a bow instead of a plec. Potential wasn't enough though. Both singers' voices were flat, the range of notes within tracks was too narrow, the bass was far too loud (thundering through my ribcage), and most songs never progressed musically. Wrong, off-key, and disappointing.

One Day International were up next and blew me away. Their climactic performance was certainly the most polished and passionate of the entire festival. I've already put aside a couple of yo-yo's to buy their album, to be released in October. Each band member was immersed and focused, and seemed to be in the midst of what spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle describes as 'flow', a higher level of consciousness. It's been a long time since I've seen such a tight set. The music itself falls somewhere between Keane and Broken Social Scene in terms of influence, seeping with explosive build-ups and beautiful cello notes. Track of the evening had to be 'Sleeping on Trains,' delivered with vivacity by the lead singer's expressive Thom Yorke style voice. I'm still a bit dubious about the band name, but their music lifted me out of Dublin for a half hour with its beauty.

Hyper electro rocker, Sounds of System Breakdown, had a long-winded soundcheck at Eamonn Doran's, but it was worth it. Our other CLUAS reviewer didn't enjoy the performance but for me it was an electrotrip that gave me lots to smile about. Despite a few technical problems and false starts, our dude took it on the chin and jumped around, multitasking between laptop, guitar and singing. The audience loved it too and there was even a bit of mild dancing (the first I've seen at HWCH). At around the second song I developed a penchant for SOSB's main man who had plenty of stage charisma, especially when he sang a track that included the line 'Can I please take you home? It's dangerous out there for a girl on her own.' Yes, it's never professional to be attracted to a musician but it certainly makes the performance even more enjoyable. And SOSB's dirty bassy electro rock charmed me too, reminding me of Hot Chip, Metronomy and The Rapture.

My final trek to Autamata was well worth it, if only for the track 'I Spy' (which bizarrely features on my Top 25 Most Played in iTunes). The music was a savage pop-feast and the performance had a high energy that unfortunately the audience didn't catch wind of.

I'm so glad the temptations of a warm lit fire and hot whiskey at home didn't take hold, because the final night at HWCH was definitely the best.

Niamh Madden

In addition to Steven O'Rourke's Festival Diary for Day 1, Day 2 and Day 3 of HWCH 2008, check out the following CLUAS reviews of bands who played the festival:

• Autamata, Sounds Of System Breakdown and Robotnik live at HWCH (Day 3)
• Foxface, Bats and others at HWCH (Saturday)
• Frightened Rabbit, The Vinny Club and Bats at HWCH (night 2)
• Crayonsmith, The Parks and A Lazarus Soul at HWCH
• Chequerboard, Alphamono and Fiach live at HWCH
• Nakatomi Plaza, Half Cousin and Lines Drawing Circles live at HWCH
• Super Extra Bonus Party, Groom and The Dublin Duck Dispensery live at HWCH

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Autamata, Sounds Of System Breakdown and Robotnik live at HWCH Day 3

Review Snapshot: Despite the inclement weather, Sunday’s HWCH drew the best performances from the artists and the biggest crowds from their fans.

The Cluas Verdict? 7.5 out of 10

Full Review:

Going into the last night of the HWCH festival ’08, I calculated that out of the ten or so acts I had so far seen, there were only two that I would have no interest in checking out a second time. Thinking this a good statistic so far, I held a lot of hope for the final tally.

Unfortunately, the first hour began pushing up the score of the uninteresting, and “technical difficulties” seemed to haunt the night. My Brother Woody, who released the pleasant and summery It’s A Long Way From That Sort of Thing You Were Raised earlier this year, opened the night in The Academy 2 to an scant audience and presented a set that matched the album perfectly: tight, warm, bouncy, just a little throwaway and most of all safe. As a friend described it: “a perfect present for a niece you don’t know very well – safe, and they’re guaranteed at the very least not to hate it.” My Brother Woody were followed closely by Not Men But Giants, whose sloppiness, repetitiveness and stop-start rhythms left no real impression apart from a jerky buzzing like some sort of unsteady but persistent bee.

The Academy 2’s straits considerably improved with the crowds that accompanied Robotnik’s shambles of a gig. Losing ten minutes in getting his equipment organized – and more time one song in when it broke down again – his energetic antics lost a little of their impact. Yet, when Robotnik managed to carve his way through three high-density songs before time was called, the crowd cried out for more: Robotnik, despite his awkwardness and frustration, has exactly what both the previous bands lacked. The short set pounded with imagination, spontaneity and verve. It could be argued that his rolling on the floor with a SuperSoaker during Puddlestarter was a little much, but try telling that to Chris Morrin, a man to whom the divide between stage and audience means little. As Key Notes will attest, Robotnik's stood out as one of the best, if most cursed, performances of the weekend.

Next to Eamonn Doran’s and Sounds of System Breakdown, a man (plus friends) whose set showed how both man and machine can let you down in times of need. After an average first track, the aptly named guitarist suffered from a severe bout of programming flu; and then to exacerbate matters, once the sampled beats were back up and running, was forced to spend another few minutes educating his drummer, who appeared unable to find the downbeats. After this dubious and embarrassing start, Sounds Like System Breakdown proceeded to throw everything he had into what remained of his set, turning what could have been a fairly ordinary few songs into a tour de force of rhythmic experimentation and sonic adventure. Seeing Sweet Jane traipse in, lugging their gear from the rain-flooded Meeting House Square, caused both confusion and the warm glow of the knowledge that you were right after all to stay indoors. Whether Sweet Jane’s set was in fact cancelled has yet to be ascertained. 

Autamata, the sweet pop/electro-heads of the Irish scene, came as one of the biggest system shocks of the whole weekend. To any (including myself) who had until tonight only known the recorded Autamata sound, this Button Factory gig could have been nothing else. Pounding with a feral bass and sexy aggression, Autamata lose all their innocence when put on a stage, with producer and guiding force Ken McHugh jumping up and down, and one of the most unusual voices in the Irish circuit soaring and growling. Unfortunately, Autamata, possibly most good-natured band in Ireland, appeared to bring with them an entourage of posing scenesters, leaving me stuck behind a trio of extremely intoxicated dancers, who were totally feeling the beats, man.

So at the end of the final round the scores are Uninteresting: 4, Decent Enough: 15. While the Hard Working Class Heroes weekend had its faults, it certainly made its point.

Anna Murray

In addition to Steven O'Rourke's Festival Diary for Day 1, Day 2 and Day 3 of HWCH 2008, check out the following CLUAS reviews of bands who played the festival:

• One Day International, Mackerel the Cat and Others at HWCH (Sunday)
• So Cow, New Amusement and more at HWCH (night 3)
• Foxface, Bats and others at HWCH (Saturday)
• Frightened Rabbit, The Vinny Club and Bats at HWCH (night 2)
• Crayonsmith, The Parks and A Lazarus Soul at HWCH
• Chequerboard, Alphamono and Fiach live at HWCH
• Nakatomi Plaza, Half Cousin and Lines Drawing Circles live at HWCH
• Super Extra Bonus Party, Groom and The Dublin Duck Dispensery live at HWCH

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Sunday evening in Key Note Towers usually involves this blog lying on the couch - a cold beer in one hand and the remote control in the other - flicking between La Liga and American Football. As you can imagine, Mrs. Key Notes isn’t a big fan of Sunday’s as all hope of this blog finally putting that coving up or fixing the door on the washing machine is lost for another week. Therefore, standing in the freezing rain that enveloped Meeting House Square yesterday as Scottish band Larmousse played to just 15 people, almost a third of whom were Sons & Daughters, was positively exhilarating.

Alas, the same could not be said for Larmousse, whose meandering songs lack the necessary musicianship to keep an audience captivated (that’s a nicer way to say they were boring, very, very boring) and, towards the end of the set, Mrs. Key Notes was resorting to rude jokes to keep herself entertained. It was time to move on.

And move on we did, tough only as far as Eamon Dorans to get out of the rain. As a quick aside, Key Notes is of the opinion that Dorans has the potential to be one of Dublin’s best venues. However, when you serve drinks in warm and, worse still, unclean glasses it doesn’t matter how ’cool’ a facade you have. There is a very good reason why ‘Empty’ Dorans is generally the only bar in the Temple Bar area with room to breathe in.

Suitably grumpy, we made our way back to Meeting House Square to catch the double header of Armoured Bear and New Amusement. Key Notes was impressed with Armoured Bear and their quirky acoustic driven pop. However, if the lead singer mentioned the name of the band one more time (or, indeed, the fact they were from Cork), this blog could not have been held responsible for his actions. Key Notes understands that you have to promote yourself, but not at the risk of annoying your audience.

At the other end of the spectrum, by almost forgetting to tell everyone who they were, came New Amusement. A much larger (though still relatively small) crowd had assembled by this stage and included CLUAS’ very own Ian Wright. Unfortunately, Key Notes couldn’t stick around for the whole set as the rain just became too much. Seeking shelter, Mrs. Key Notes and I went to the Music Centre (Button Factory) where Mackerel the Cat was wearing a silly hat. A quick wave to Niamh Madden (or text as it happens) who will no doubt provide a full review later and we were off again to Academy 2 for Robotnik.

A man with a horse’s head, a rainbow umbrella, a miniature guitar, raincoats inside and a drummer wearing sunglasses (which always reminds Key Notes of It's 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark, and we're wearing sunglasses). It could only be Robotnik. Anna Murray was amongst the biggest audience Key Notes had seen over the course of the weekend and will attest to just how good this guy is. Songs about mortgages don’t sound appealing but when you start a fight with a man with a horse’s head it doesn’t matter that you’ve forgotten your capo and shortened your set because you can’t get your instruments to work. It was Key Notes favourite performance of the weekend.

As the rain continued to fall we (now being joined by two friends) made our way back to the Music Centre for Carly Sings. Despite being in possession of a beautiful voice, one that would make the hair on the back of your neck stand on end, it just all seemed rather dull after the high energy Robotnik. Of course, it’s not her fault that a poor piece of scheduling left her as the penultimate act in the Music Centre on a night when a venue such as 4 Dame Lane would have been much more suitable.

The last performance of the evening was Autamata, whose Colours of Sound album is one of Key Notes favourite albums of the last few years. This blog was less than impressed with the live performance though but that may have been more to do with the audience. Isn’t it deliciously ironic that an artist who does away with all concept of scenes and genres is followed by such a scenester crowd? Or is that an ironic use of the word ironic? While Key Notes is at it, who dresses like that on a Sunday night; don’t you people have work tomorrow?

It’s late and Key Notes is beginning to sound like his dad. This blog is off to bed. However, before he does, Key Notes would like to add that while day three of HWCH 2008 combined the best bits of Friday (catching up with friends) and Saturday (some great performances), this blog worries about the festivals future, a topic that it will deal with in the coming days. Finally, a big thank you to Niamh, Anna & Ian for their time and effort over the course of the weekend. Key Notes, signing out.

Photo: Lindsey Foley

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A review of the album Here Is What Is by Daniel Lanois Review Snapshot:Here Is What Is is a weak record by acclaimed producer Daniel Lanois. Failed attempts at being 'artsy' and an overly ...

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The cultural heart of Paris is la rive gauche, the celebrated Left Bank of the Seine. Its beat comes from the district of Saint Germain des Prés. 
 
Saint Germain has impeccable arty credentials. After the Second World War, existentialist writers like Sartre, de Beauvoir and Camus debated in Les Deux Magots and the Café Flore. A half-century before that, Oscar Wilde passed away in his final home, a room at the Hotel Alsace on the rue des Beaux-Arts.

A fat, bearded Jim Morrison would get raucously drunk in those same cafés. Continuing on his tourist trail, he sought out and stayed for weeks in the very hotel room where Wilde died. Morrison died soon after; rumour has it that he expired not in his apartment tub in Le Marais across town, but in a Saint Germain nightclub and was unceremoniously dumped back at his flat.

(There’s no connection between this area and Paris Saint Germain football club. PSG are named after Saint Germain en Laye, an affluent town west of Paris where the club still train.)

Today the Boulevard Saint Germain still buzzes with activity. In front of the street's large old church, especially on Sundays, there are exhibitions and happenings and street performers. You're sure to find musicians there, but they won't be playing 'Wonderwall' or 'Hallelujah' - not on those clarinets and double-basses. Saint Germain is the traditional home of jazz in Paris.
 
The Saint Germain jazz boom happened in the '40s and '50s. True, before the Second World War Django Reinhardt had been playing successfully around Paris with Stephane Grapelli and their group, Le Hot Club de France. (Trivia: the Hot Club de France were one of the first music groups to have a lead guitarist supported by a rhythm guitarist. Today most four- or five- piece rock bands line out in this formation.) But Django's greatest popularity came with his 1951 residency at the Club Saint Germain on rue Saint Benoît. 

Saint Germain was where bebop first hit Europe. The sleekness and melancholia of the new U.S. jazz sound was mother's milk to the dark-dressed, Gaulois-smoking, hip young artists in the clubs of the area. Local singers and artists like Boris Vian and Juliette Greco became French icons.
 
Miles Davis ruled here when he stayed in the French capital in the late 1950s. The monument to his Paris reign is his mournful soundtrack to Louis Malle's 'Ascenseur Pour L'Echauffaud'. One of the greatest and best-loved recordings in jazz history, Davis wrote and recorded it in a couple of days. The film's most famous scene and the score's best known section, when Jeanne Moreau wanders aimlessly along late-night streets, is the essence of Paris.

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Foxface, Bats and Others at HWCH (Saturday)

Review Snapshot: Saturday nights in Temple Bar? Difficult to navigate for small-shouldered girls. Last night’s tough weave through the drunken masses proved a task in getting to gigs on time, but the quality of the acts more than made up for logistical difficulties.

The Cluas Verdict? 6.5 out of 10

Full Review:
There’s nothing more enjoyable than watching grown men scream their heads off. That’s just one of the reasons why Bats were one of the most entertaining acts so far at HWCH. Meeting House Square wasn’t as packed as it ought to have been, but faithful Bats fans headbanging at the front more than made up for a relatively empty gig. Lead singer Rupert looks cuddly but sings like an angry grizzly, with every outburst last night echoed with epileptic lighting. Savage screeching, heavy distortion, post-rock guitar riffs and uber energy: Bats have all the elements of a modern, albeit unique, rock band. How could you not like a band who finish the night with a track called ‘Bats Spelled Backwards is Stab’?

Elbowing our way to Andrew’s Lane Theatre, we arrived late and only caught about four tracks by Glasgow folksters Foxface.  Foxface masked individuals were scattered around the venue, as well as a couple of band members donning fox masks. Being an unabashed fan of cutesy novelty, that was enough to impress me for starters. The band’s tinkering blend of Celtic melodies with twee anti-folk lyrics really impressed the audience, a very responsive one at that. Reminiscent of Decemberists, Foxface manage to combine old folk tunes with a new sound and sweet likeable vocals.

After the final lilt of Foxface, there was no point in trying to make The Academy or MHS, judging by the amount of time it took us to scurry through the crowds earlier. We prepared ourselves for a bit of a dance when Crayonsmith took to the stage. It never happened though. Having listened to the band on MySpace for a few weeks, and having heard the hype, I expected excess energy, jumping around and fiery charisma. The music was solid, but the performance was lacklustre. Some of the tracks were a little repetitive and the lead vocalist’s voice just sounded monotone. The audience loved it though and the band got a huge response.

Frightened Rabbit wrapped up the gigs at ALT – an enjoyable enough set, but the band sounded far too much like a Biffy Clyro/Death Cab for Cutie lovechild. Being a fan of both bands, you’d imagine I’d be fully supportive of such a love child, but it didn’t do any more than mildly entertain me. If the festival had been more packed this evening, there might have been more of an atmosphere – which was lacking at times. However the bands were of very high quality this evening, and it was even difficult to choose who to see because of bands clashing with each other. 

Niamh Madden

In addition to Steven O'Rourke's Festival Diary for Day 1, Day 2 and Day 3 of HWCH 2008, check the following CLUAS reviews of bands who played:

• One Day International, Mackerel the Cat and Others at HWCH (Sunday)So Cow, New Amusement and more at HWCH (night 3) Autamata, Sounds Of System Breakdown and Robotnik live at HWCH Day 3 Frightened Rabbit, The Vinny Club and Bats at HWCH (night 2) Crayonsmith, The Parks and A Lazarus Soul at HWCH Chequerboard, Alphamono and Fiach live at HWCH Nakatomi Plaza, Half Cousin and Lines Drawing Circles live at HWCH Super Extra Bonus Party, Groom and The Dublin Duck Dispensery live at HWCH
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Frightened Rabbit, The Vinny Club and Bats at HWCH (night 2) Review Snapshot: Night 2 of 2008's HWCH saw the cream of the festival's lineup all crowbarred into a single night. A nice compl...

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Crayonsmith, The Parks and A Lazarus Soul at HWCH Day 2

Review Snapshot: After a little timetable confusion, Day 2 of HWCH '08 proved a slight disappointment after yesterday, but with a few outstanding performances

The Cluas Verdict? 6 out of 10

Full Review:

Strange things have been happening at this festival: between some serious organisational miscommunications, poor sound and last night’s timetable mix-up. Having turned up at the supposed starting time of Hybrasil’s set in the Button Factory (7.45 according the HWCH schedule booklet) and waiting a twenty minutes before heading, a little let-down and confused, toward Andrew’s Lane and Grand Pocket Orchestra, I was more than a little annoyed this morning to double check the online schedule and discover that Hybrasil’s set was in fact timetabled to start at 8.15.

Although I missed out catching one excellent band, I was lucky to catch another. Earlier this year, GPO released their debut EP this year – an interesting but apparently misleading work, giving the impression of a quirky, poppy, jittery and melodic group having fun. Grand Pocket Orchestra live is a totally different beast: though still undeniably jittery and quirky, it is wild, aggressive, and loud. At its heart is a girl, obviously starved for attention but with an interesting collection of instruments, and a guy, a singer who throws shapes a little like Ian Curtis, or a little like a mime artist with a geometry obsession. Although the sound was at first muddy and indistinct, making it impossible to distinguish one instrument from another, a blinding set of songs emerged from the confusion and swept the crowd along with it.

Then the frenzied rush over to A Lazarus Soul in the Button Factory. And after the band started, an equally frenzied desire to rush back out again. Not familiar with the band before last night, I have been assured by Key Notes that when not bereft of their keyboard player as they were last night, A Lazarus Soul are quite a band to behold; yet I remain unconvinced. In a world where story-telling and sentimentality in lyrics are out of fashion and obscurity and allusion are in, A Lazarus Soul write impassioned songs that read sometimes like a Roddy Doyle novel with the humour stripped away, accompanied by dull crunching rock and some very 80s synth. With that deep and arresting voice their only redeeming feature, this was performance that was more dull than you can believe.

And so I was ready to be impressed by the Parks, Ireland’s favourite new wünderkinder. Having just finished their Leaving Cert, they are unseasoned and nervous, but all the more likeable for it. The Parks are a power trio with potential, but they have yet to shake the sound of a teenage garage band. Although still a little loose around the edges, each member of the band is an excellent musician with the air of a teenage heartthrob, while singer Ciaran has a voice that is as yet young but can easily become one of the most distinctive in the Irish circuit. The Parks are good at what they do, they’re just not quite there yet.

Crayonsmith proved to be the last gig I could make: the last 66 bus of the night leaves at 11.30, leaving me with less than five minutes of Le Galaxie. Much saddened by this state of affairs, I believe Crayonsmith must have been aware of my predicament, and gave one of the best shows of HWCH 08 so far to make me feel better. Songs from this year’s excellent White Wonder album were given a new injection of life and dirtied; far from the clean sounds of the album, a greater concentration on guitars and bass gave the band crunch and power, with no sacrifice in melody or sound. Not just that, but the Crayonsmith gig proved to be the busiest and most fun gig so far, with close to a full house of obvious fans.

Anna Murray

In addition to Steven O'Rourke's Festival Diary for Day 1, Day 2 and Day 3 of HWCH 2008, check out the following CLUAS reviews of bands who played the festival:

• One Day International, Mackerel the Cat and Others at HWCH (Sunday)So Cow, New Amusement and more at HWCH (night 3) Autamata, Sounds Of System Breakdown and Robotnik live at HWCH Day 3 Foxface, Bats and others at HWCH (Saturday) Frightened Rabbit, The Vinny Club and Bats at HWCH (night 2) Chequerboard, Alphamono and Fiach live at HWCH Nakatomi Plaza, Half Cousin and Lines Drawing Circles live at HWCH Super Extra Bonus Party, Groom and The Dublin Duck Dispensery live at HWCH
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Day two of HWCH 2008 started badly for Key Notes as his beloved Man United’s loss to Liverpool was swiftly followed by news of Emmanuel Adebayor’s hat-trick for Arsenal. Key Notes, in a decision up there with ‘I don’t think it’s an iceberg Captain’, opted to drop Adebayor from his fantasy football this week, a decision that will, even at this early stage, end his quest to win the CLUAS fantasy football league.

This blog’s general mood improved following coffee and a discussion of all things musical with fellow CLUAS writer Niamh Madden. Dinner with friends, almost all of whom were HWCH virgins, also helped to soften the slings and arrows of Saturday morning’s outrageous fortune. Therefore, it was with a happy heart and satisfied stomach that Key Notes and his band of merry men and women made their way to Academy 2 for Pilotlight.

This blog has a great deal of time for Pilotlight but was worried about the venue; previous experiments in the Academy (or Spirit as it was then) had shown that dance venues can’t provide the type of sound systems required for playing anything other than dance music (very important) and that the bouncers in said clubs weren’t sure how to deal with boys and girls with big hair and skinny jeans (not so important). As an aside, Key Notes would like to nominate skinny jeans as this decades shoulder pads; something lots of people are going to look back on in a few years and shudder.

However, this blog’s fears were unfounded as the sound in Academy 2 (the Academy’s underground venue) was excellent. Every note was crystal clear and Pilotlight’s mix of melancholy and the infinite madness (their on stage banter was almost as entertaining as their music) delighted a small but supportive audience. The same could not be said for Distractors unfortunately, despite their lead singers’ best attempts to channel the ghost of Michael Hutchence.

Unimpressed, our group left Academy 2 four songs in to make our way over the Ha’penny Bridge to the Music Centre (Button Factory) to catch the ever entertaining A Lazarus Soul. Shorn of their keyboard player Bryan McMahon, ALS delivered a completely different set from the one Key Notes was expecting. Much of last years excellent Graveyard of Burnt Out Cars was lost and with it the magic of A Lazarus Soul. Not bad; just not as towering a performance as this blog knows the band can give.  During this set Key Notes bumped into another fellow CLUAS writer, Anna Murray, who suggested Hybrasil's show earlier in the evening hadn't started on time, if at all.  Further details were unavailable at time of posting.

Next on the bill was Deaf Animal Orchestra whose moniker promises little but whose music certainly delivers. There were times when it strayed a little too close to wearing plaid shirts, trucker hats and drinking whiskey from a bottle on your front porch for this blogs liking but, that being said, it certainly got people dancing, this blog included, and it was for this reason that it didn’t notice it’s coat had been stolen. If anyone sees someone wearing a grey/black G-Star jacket in the Temple Bar area over the next few days, they are advised to contact the police and/or punch them in the face.

A joke of course, but this blog was just glad it wasn’t raining as flying visits were made to Andrews Lane (Crayonsmith: musically it was fine, but that voice gets dull after more than 3 songs) and 4 Dame Lane (Ollie Cole: complete with the worlds smallest set list on what looked to be a small post-it, the man has a voice this blog could listen to all night) before Key Notes’ shivering arms made their way to Meeting House Square for Fight Like Apes.

Given the terrible weather and sound problems of the previous evening, Key Notes wasn’t sure what to expect from the band. As previously stated, this blog hasn’t always had time for what must be the most hyped Irish band of the decade but, once more, their incendiary live performance combined with songs that sound catchier with each rendition showed that they are a band that are more than capable of living up to their hype.

As with day one, Key Notes is sure his fellow writers will cover Saturday’s performances in greater detail but it is worth remarking that, despite the excellent line up of bands on day two, not a single venue was full. Even Meeting House Square, which in previous years has had to refuse people entry for even the most mediocre of bands (take a bow The Things), was relatively empty for Fight Like Apes. There are many factors that could account for this; all of them worrying for the festivals organisers.

That being said, the quality of music on offer on day two was highlighted by the bands this blog failed to see; Le Galaxie and Frightened Rabbit to name but two. Sunday will offer similar dilemmas with performances from the likes of Autamata and Robotnik as well as Sons and Daughters, curators of this year’s Scottish Invasion. Thankfully, having too much choice is a great problem for a festival to have.

FLA Photo: Toniireton

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