Die So Fluid - Live
Shard / Trauma Pet / Plastic Toys
Wednesday 28th of July 2004
First band on, Shard, got better throughout their set, settling in to an androgynous and invasive performance with a fair bit of suggestive posturing.
With a sound that has elements of The Clash and The Cure, as well as a fair bit of rock and roll at it's roots, the image is a combination of sexually ambiguous Glam such as Marc Bolan and all out cross dressing of the Brian Molko variety.
Stand out tracks surprisingly included 'Terminal Case', which worked well live after failing to impress on record. They could have been even better if they could have started the show with the same confidence and energy that they finished with.
Trauma Pet were up second with a two piece set up of singer, Elie, and bass player, Tara, who play a mixture of styles with a backing track.
If they have a listen to bands such as Lunascape, they will get some ideas on how to improve the overall effect of their backing track, which was definitely letting them down with a generally thin sound and they shouldn't be afraid to pump the vocals out with a bit more emotional force. Elie shouldn't be afraid to play some more guitar either as the song containing her ambient and haunting guitar line was the stand out track.
The last time I saw this band I was unimpressed, now I can accept that there is potential, next time Trauma Pet need to impress me.
Plastic Toys launched in to their set with a slick professionalism that complemented the American rock style. Hard hitting bass noise and punchy pop hooks all contributed towards an accessible sound.
If you imagine Rachel Stamp playing Marilyn Manson's Mechanical Animals l.p. with Billy Corgan on vocals, you won't be far off the sound of Plastic Toys.
Whether the songs translate from live performance to record will be interesting to see, as the instant appeal of the tracks live could well mean a fairly predictable throw-away album, which will probably require some kind of parental guidance sticker, judging by the level of pointless swearing in the lyrics.
Plastic Toys are a tight live band with appealing music and lots of energy. See them live before you buy their record.
With album 'Spawn of Dysfunction' due for release on 9th August 2004, Die So Fluid played a set full of tracks from the forthcoming release.
The songs switch from rock to punk to metal and there were no two songs in the set with exactly the same feel. Recognisable songs included not only the three singles and recent pre-album teaser 'Bitterness by Discipline', but also songs that, having heard them at previous shows, had remained firmly attached to the 'memorable song cortex' of the brain.
The anticipation has now reached overload. We can't wait for the album any longer. Luckily, a promotional copy has arrived, so we can tell you all about it.
Author: Steve
Venue: The Railway Inn (Winchester)
Found in: Live Reviews