BRITISH WILDLIFE FEST V 5th March @ Brudenell

I realise the fest was about 2 weeks ago, normally I'd start writing shit up the day after the show but I was just too fucking tired. And then one thing led to another and I ended up putting it off until right now.. I mean, its not like it really matters though, its not like people are sitting on the edges of their seats waiting for my reviews to come out, I just feel I need to clarify things for my own sake.

The night was amazing, it totally blew away any expectations, not simply because of the music calibre, but the vibes were perfect - the right people in the right place. I had originally planned to go with some friends from London but they couldn't make it, so I found some replacements in Leeds. Just kidding, Chris, Mike and Dave came along completely voluntarily which I found pretty remarkable and admirable in a way, most people would be deterred by the entrance fee and the lack of recognisable band names. It was a good crew though, all dudes are really open to new things so I didn't have to keep checking over my shoulder like an over-enthusiastic camp leader. 

We got there a bit before 4.30 because I being the cocksucker that I am had to get a good spot for Blacklisters.. there was no way I was gonna miss them.

Beards, Nope and In Zaire @ The Packhorse. 14th January, 2011.

My farts have been pretty disgusting over the past few days, the intensity of the stench is really out of character. Pretty eggy, but theres something so pungent deep within the abyss of stink and I just can't put my finger on it... They are so bad that the when I was skating through uni with my friend Chris before the Beards/Nope/In Zaire show, he could smell them when riding about 10 meters behind me. He seemed pretty impressed though so maybe it's not something to be ashamed of after all. I was a little nervous getting into the Packhorse though, but we were there pretty early so I had some time to let a few out before the crowd got any thicker... Strategic farts can be quite challenging, I guess that's one reason to look forward to getting older, it'd be nice to fart on demand like my dad, its a pretty awesome ice-breaker at parties.

Anyway, after I cut one of the biggest farts of the night, Beards started getting ready for their set. It was my second time to see them, the first being at the Birthmark gig, and it's always nice to hear songs I recognise, that way I can get a bit more technical with my moves... And being able to sing a line or two definitely ups my cred on the underground knowledge scale, all you posers can suck it!!

Just kidding.. They started off with spinning coin, the only song I could recognise, and it definitely got the show off to a good start. The Packhorse is a perfect venue for the band, because the close-proximity really gives you a better understanding of the efforts each member puts in to their music. At the Brudenell I was kind of far away, but this time I could see the sweat on their foreheads and feel the fast pace of their breathing. And best of all, I had no fart alarms! I was kinda bummed they didn't play So de do de ku, but it's no big deal. One thing I've come to realise about Beards is that they are a performance band. Their recordings definitely don't give justice to how epic they are live. Check their fuckin myspace already! See that? They've got two shows in February, GET ON THAT SHIT.

After a bit of a break, three-piece 'Nope' got set up and ready to play. After a somewhat slow/building intro song, they started getting into it, the guitarist playing and looping riffs which seemed quite simplistic, something most people could think of in a jam session. However, the addition of another drum set (and drummer) definitely brings the intensity of their sound up. I was drifting in and out of conscious thinking throughout the set, at times getting completely entranced by the repetitiveness of it all. It’s like I became so used to hearing a certain rhythm that it just became engrained in my system, and my body would start to move without me telling it. I found myself pinching my chest at one point, not really sure how my hand ended up there. The climaxes weren't as epic as I'd expected them to be, but seeing as the entire set was one song it made a lot more sense in the long-run. And then it ended. It seemed to take a few moments for people to come-to... I'm not even sure how long they played for, it could’ve been up to 20 minutes.. I have no fuckin idea really. A pretty unique experience for sure.

Then came on 'In Zaire', fortunately most of the building fart pressure had subsided during/after Nope so I had less to worry about. The set up was a typical drum, bass and guitar, and instead of a usual mic set, the frontman had some synth system linked up to the guitar and bass. I could tell after the first minute that this band was in a more left-field spectrum, with an almost experimental jazz beat at times, as if the members were slowly but surely finding the beat amongst themselves. It got pretty hectic at the points of climax; the band definitely used the amps to their full potential. I think overall, the band wasn’t as great as the other two before it, but their performance left me in a strange state of… profundity. I would’ve gladly stood staring into space after they left their instruments had my friend not tapped my shoulder. There was one point where the singer shoved a small microphone into his mouth, blowing and screaming into it, creating a really distant yet magnificent sound. I think part of the fun of going to shows like these though, is that I have little to no idea what to expect from most artists, so there's always an element of hit-and-miss, but I like most bands I hear live so maybe I'm not the best person to judge.

Overall, it was definitely worth it, I was a bit disconcerted at first because I could have easily gone home and revised, but fuck it I’d already paid my 4 pounds. My emotions have been up and down these days anyway so a show is always a good way to take my thoughts elsewhere. To sum it up, Chris made a pretty accurate observation; it was a pretty drum-orientated night. In my opinion all 4 drummers killed it; it got me pretty hyped to skate afterwards. There’s nothing like bombing down Royal Park Road with your ears still ringing from the volume and your sphincters sighing after a much needed fart…

Check out their myspaces:

• www.myspace.com/beards2000
• http://www.myspace.com/nopeleeds
• http://www.myspace.com/inzaire

-Ben

Beards, Juffage and Birthmark @ Brudenell Social Club, 10th Jan 2011

The night started off with Beards, a band on the local scene I've always heard about but never witnessed. I recognised the guitarist from another band called Cissy, a fast-paced bouncy post-rock-electro-pop insanity group. The pace was almost similar at times, but the power and presence of the two pretty badass chicks on drums and bass added a way heavier, messier sound, but still quite upbeat at the same time. On top of the awesome riffs, both girls took turns to sing, yell, or scream... and I could feel the fierceness and raw energy in the drummer's face everytime she smashed the snare and everytime the bassist pulled on a string.. it was rad. And they do a shitload of shows in Leeds too. I can't wait to see them again, they fuckin killed it! The only downside was the limited crowd, if there were more people I would've totally been down to mosh. Even just a little pushy pushy...

I have to mention, I've found my new favourite accompaniment for shows; coke. But, it has to be from a glass bottle. After a bottle of that shit I was so down to dance. Fuck beer, that just weighs my stomach down and makes me fart. Only downside of coke is that I can feel my enamel slowly wearing away… but so are my ear-drums so I guess that somehow balances out. Maybe they’re eroding at similar rates, so that the weight distribution isn't uneven?

After Beards, the infamous yet underrated one-man-bander known as Juffage took the floor, after a bit of mandatory wire untangling and plugging in-ing. I've seen him once before, but it was too crowded to see what he was doing. This time I had full view, it's almost entertainment watching him flip all these random lights and switches. I have to say though, he is probably the most co-ordinated multi-tasker I've seen in a long time... It blew my mind watching him smash up that drum set so precisely with one hand, with the other pressed down on the keyboard in perfect tone.. and to top it off the fucker was singing!! There was a point of confusion when he bust out 3 old-school stereos playing some unintelligible static noise, which he then placed around the room, and one in the pub next door, but like all his songs, every noise and every movement has a purpose which you undoubtedly discover later in the set. He ended with a pretty sombre tune for his style, but somehow it was a fitting end to a fucking crazy set.

So it came to the headliners, a band from the States called Birthmark. To be honest I didn't have much of an idea of how they sounded except for a few clips off their website, all I knew was that the lead singer (Nate Kinsella) is related to Mike and Tim Kinsella (American Football, Joan of Arc, Owen etc etc.) ... which, pardon my typecasting, is a pretty sick bloodline to be a part of. So Nate came on, looking kinda dazed but with a faint smile on his lips. After a few opening words and a couple taps on his mini xylophone, he came to mumble something about too many beers, and everyone began to smile too... I have to say, the music was pretty beautiful. Nate was pretty giddy whenever he was talking, but the moment he started playing/singing, you could tell he was totally encapsulated by the music. It would have been nice to hold onto a girl at times (fuckin cheesy I know), but after a while the music's atmosphere began to sink in, and I slowly began to not give a shit about anything but the sounds flowing into my brain. This was one of the first shows of a band I've never seen before where I've actually tried to pay attention to the lyrics and understand what the singer is saying. You should try it some time; everything makes a lot more sense.

One of my favourites was about balloons, and as I just found out, is off the new album and is aptly named "Balloons". I think the part of the song that hit me the most was the lyric "its hard to be an anchor, when you've always been a balloon". May sound cheesy but fuck you I don’t care, if you were at the show you probably would've broken down in tears like a whiney little baby.

One highlight was the arm-wrestle. Earlier on in the show, Nate somehow came to challenge some dude at the front to an arm wrestle, and to everyone's surprise they actually did it - midway through the set. It was pretty awesome, like a battle royale between the USA and the UK.. and, I'm sorry to upset all you patriotic Brits reading this but, YOU LOST!! The loser did have an excuse however, claiming Nate had the unfair advantage of "drummer's arms". But to be frank its not much of an excuse - I'm pretty sure the loser had a serious case of "chronic-masturbater's arms".

I also give props to their bassist/drummer/clarinettist/violinst… that dude can play a lot of instruments very well. Overall the music was really soothing, it put me in a nice sway at times, and at others it made me put my hand against my lips in a contemplative fashion. Some people may like a crowded audience, but for this band a max of about 30 people was all it needed to be perfect.

Anyway, after the last song I got to talking to the guitarist (not sure about his name), and Nate and his wife, who played on the keyboard. They are all super nice, approachable people, and that just added the extra justification I needed to buy their CD from the merch table. Overall - a fucking awesome night, if you ever get the chance to see Birthmark play I say take it! And if not, that sucks but you can always buy their music online. Their newest album is called "shaking hands", check it on their website: http://birthmark.bandcamp.com/

And here are the myspaces of Beards and Juffage:

• http://www.myspace.com/beards2000
• http://www.myspace.com/juffage

PS: The next day I went to a café near home and they all happened to be there too. It was pretty cool and unexpected, and they were all still as friendly as the night before, despite looking kinda lost and exhausted. And for any current or potential stalkers, the bassist likes crushed black pepper in his scrambled eggs.

-Ben