BLINSHALL + RESTRICTION OF LIBERTY + THE KOROVAS + THE RISE + PAGE 6 + THE VIEW - The Doghouse,Dundee 17-03-07
Yet again, a secret - or unannounced - gig from The View proves to be the worst kept secret known to man - as you could tell by about half past 9 when there wasn't a single square inch of the entire Doghouse not populated by a body of some description - in short, the place was PACKED!!
I missed Blinshal - sorry, guys - which is a bit of a shame as several people came up to me and said it was the best they'd heard them play so far. Nex time, no doubt. I got there just as Restrictionof Liberty took the stage and, like Rush Hour Soul the week before, this was a fresh, revitalised R of L as they positively tore into a set of orginal songs and a couple of covers with an energy and aggression not previously displayed to as full an extent. The band delivered a hard-rocking set of songs with some really exciting guitar work from the lead guitarist, once again showing that guitar heroes are on the way back! That they sounded so solid and really tight meant that any thoughts you might have had that the band were great in glimpses, are now thorughly dispelledas this was a totally on-fire set. The traditional crowd-pleasers of ZZ Top's "Sharp Dressed Man" and Led Zep's "Moby Dick", complete with eye-popping frum solo that, this time was greeted with wrapt attention and hearty applause from a good 150 unsuspecting people, went down a storm. A band with renewed vigour and rocking talent, let's hope this marks a turning point.
Following them was a band from outside of Dundee called The Korovas. They were sensational. Sadly, I can't give you a song-by-song review because I was too budy being blown away by them, but essentially an indie band who really powered away and provided a steaming, solid and incendiary set with some of the most sizzling dual guitar work this side of rock and a vocalist who powered out the songs with all the force of a metal singer and yet this was all still classic "indie" territory with a great set of songs that drove into your consciousness one after the other. On first hearing, I wasn't aware of anything overly commercial about them, but I remember the set just getting better and better as it went on, thinking "I've got to see these guys again, sometime" - and I will - expect more detail in due course!!
The Rise came along nexct and provided a rock solid set of Rise favourites, starting with their classic anthem "Black Monday", getting up a stomping head of steam and never looking back as they stormed through a set that included "Leader" and many more. The lead guitarist provides a mix of slide-driven textural assault, next to sky-high leads and searing subtlety to give the band a distinct flavour as the rhythm guitarist adds the density and intensity to the rhythms ection who whip things up to whirlwind force, on top of which the high-register lead vocal delivers a mix of memorable hooks and choruses amid songs that have a flow akin to a modern indie version laced with touches of seventies bands Foghat and Led Zep. Went down well with the audience, too!
Final support to our View friends were Page 6. With a sound as crystal clear as you'd like, this was Page 6 totally on fire, confident and playing the best I think I've heard them to to date. They started in funk mode and rarely let up, although the dynamics of the slower parts of "Drunk Man" only serve to heighten the effect. The bassist was just jaw-dropping tonight - this wasn't merely funk bass, this was something from another dimension as thick slabs of dirty, funky, solid, pounding bass just hammered out of the PA system and dared you both not to move and be impressed. The guitarist provides a mix of leads and riffs that range from tasty solos to driving harmonies while the drummer keeps the momentum going in a way that sounds complex and direct at the same time, but never one-dimensional and always an absolutely vital and alive component of what makes this band so great. To top it all off, the lead singer moves around the stage like a dervish but with class and style, delivering the addictive songs with force, emotion, dynamics and passion, the vocal absolutely perfect for the honed-to-perfection original songs. But, above all that, this is a band performance - as tight as they come, unique in their field, and certainly way more than "just a funk-rock band" - they have everything coming together - writing, arranging, playing and a set of songs that, enjoyed live, are absolutely irresistible to everything from the head to the feet. A truly awesome set - and the best part is, that you feel they are still on the way up!!
So, to The View. That they are - deservedly - the heroes of many music fans, old and young, on the Dundee Scene right now, is a great testament to the band and what they have acheived to bring recognition to the musical community of Dundee. Tonight, they rocketed through a set that began with one top 5 single and ended with another, justifiable proof of their success. The audience rocked as one entity as the band delivered the finest set of musical "football terrace anthems" on the planet, the songs a mix of pop, punk, real life and energised vitality. They unveiled a new track that showed the band obviously being influenced by new things as a mix of ska and punk "a la View" streamed through the speakers, not exacly the catchiest thing they've ever done - on first hearing - but decidedly interesting. But the whole place rocked and loved them - and so did I. You can't argue with that.
HOWEVER......... for me, band of the night were Page 6 - they were just sensational and on this form, surely must gain wider recognition sooner rather than later. But, all in all, a great night of bands in a sardine-like Doghouse.