DUNDEE LIVE - BANDS TO WATCH!!
BAXTER PARK SUNBATHER + CAPSTIN POLE + THE ELECTROLITES - Hustlers 26-09-08
I'd wanted to put on a dance gig for ages - I touched on it when I did the concert at the Westie last year in conjunction with my great friend Rudi, a DJ, a dance-rock act and Dundee's synth music act Altres. But it wasn't REAL dance - the itch still had to be scratched.
Another itch that had been needed to be scratched for about 2 friggin' years was that of putting on in concert, Edinburgh's Capstin Pole. Elsewhere on this site - the review of the Emergenza "Battle of the Bands" - you'll find out how I first encountered this band. They'd got this song called "Nightclubbin" that lifeted the roof off and inexorably made me want to hear them do it one more time, but in my own back yard.
So, thanks to the unbridled support from Dundee's Baxter Park Sunbather and The Electrolites, who agreeed to do this first ever Dead Earnest dance gig, I was finally able to put on Capstin Pole at a gig that fitted them - for they are a dance band - aren't they? Well, actually........
First off, in terms of turnout, the event was an unmitigated disaster. This had nothing to do with the acts playing but everything to do with mine and the venue's credibility as a dance venue. Hustlers is not exactly the first place that most of the dance fraternity think of when the words "night out" spring to mind.In fact the ever effervescent Elliot from The Electrolites said, kindly, that if it hadn't been for the fact that it was me organising this, he'd never have agreed to play there, as wonderful a complement from a musician as you could get. So, with the friends of The Electrolites out for a good time and some of BPS's people there too, we went ahead regardless.
Now we had planned to have BPS (Baxter Park Sunbather) do a set on stage and a DJ set from off stage, but when Capstin Pole's gear ended up taking over the stage, we had no choice but to set him up at the back from where he just played. Soundchecks over, we handed it over to him and, when we'd finally got some sound coming from the PA, all of a sudden, this blast of electronic bass, booming drum rhythms and head-exploding mixes of samples, electronics, melodies and fx all erupted from the PA system, the urge to dance proved irresistible. The urge of the owner, who hates dance music such as this, to string me up over the yard arm, also reared its ugly head as he looked squarely at me and said, jokingly, "you know I'm going to have to kill you for this" and smiled knowingly. This was the sound of storm force hardcore techno and beyond with a vengeance, the sort of thing that you can just wallow in and enjoy hearing at the same time as moving uneasily from side to side as this wall of electronic density and rhythmic immensity engulf you in their charms. Throughout the night, the stuff this guy played from a laptop, programmes and fx, was absolutely mind-blowing, and his sheer power of asemblage and delivery was inspired.
So, it came to pass that Capstin Pole took the stage. With keyboards, guitars, bass, electronic drums and vocals, they began.
Now, before I tell you what I'm about to say, I would draw your attention to the 5 tracks currently on their myspace site - one kind of power ballad, one acoustic track, one dance pop track that sounds a bit more like Thompson Twins than anything, 2 strong dance styled tracks that are heavy enough but are quite "clean" in their sound, and "Nightclubbin" to which I alluded earlier. All good tracks, for sure but not brain-blowing.......
.....unlike this live performance, which most certainly did!!
Throughout a 25-30 minute set, and right from the start, they unleashed a performance, the power, strength and cohesion of which I could never have anticipated in a zillion years. The sound was immense, the playing tight and the songs stunning. If you want a comparison, think of The Draymin at their finest, add an extra dance dimension and inject a depth that The Draymin could only dream of, and you have the live tour-de-force that is Capstin Pole 2008. It was jaw-dropping stuff, as the band played their hearts out, the commanding rhythms coming from the electronic drums sounding solid and emotive, while the sound emanating from the rest of the band was huge and direct, while the vocalist delivered the songs wtih a passion and intensity that was spellbinding. Although they undoubtedly played a set to which you could dance, this is no "dance band" - this is an indie band that's just unbelievably brilliant - and you can dance to them, too. If this band had been at The Doghouse doing a performance like this, the crowd would be going wild - give them a Draymin support and you have a dream gig - honestly, this band just blew the roof off. Although excellent, forget the myspace tracks - in concert, this will knock your socks off. Brilliant!!
So it was that The Electrolites - Elliot and cohort - bounced onto that stage - and pretty well never stopped bouncing! Determined to deliver a set to the faithful as though the faithful were a thousand, the pair powered out a sea of trance, house, hard dance and more as the rhythms proved unceasing and varied, while the layers on top were evrything that makes live trance music so exciting, way more so than yer average DJ and way more innovative, to boot. With the added strength of live bass guitar, the rhythmic portions of the set reached positively cataclysmic as the might and magic of live dance music had everyone on their feet. It was sensational and you couldn't help but get sucked in.
So, although positively incendiary, the dance acts will keep their places where the best dance music resides - but for Capstin Pole, the world is their oyster, for, as one of the best kept secrets as one of the best live unsigned bands around Scotland right now, it surely can't be long before someone other than me, realises the incredible potential of this band - you have to see them!!
Back to Dundee Bands home page
Email Andy G
Home page