The High Speed Scene is a trio from L.A. Initially, I was drawn to their extremely polished sound and skill at their instruments. Then I got bored. They were sort of like Ima Robot, if Ima Robot were a power-trio without keyboards, and if the front man wasn't so deranged but had a very girl haircut with a very not-girly face. He was handing out CDs after the show and I got one, but don't know if I'll listen to it.
The Shout Out Louds, from Sweden, were next. For whatever reason - likely from their name - I was convinced that this particular bunch of Swedes was of the Hives/Hellacopters variety. I was wrong. They are of the Concretes variety. When the singer didn't sound like Conor Oberst, and they played their more up-beat songs, they were enjoyable enough. When the whole band really gets going and pounding away at their indie-pop, with the chick playing harmonica and moog, they were enganging. They had a 45 minute set, and it was a bit too long for my likes.
Waiting for the Futureheads to come out, Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" (which I sang at karaoke a few nights earlier, for better or worse) came on the PA. Everyone in the crowd was singing along, and when it got to the "No no NO NO NO!" part, it dropped out, the opening pre-recorded tones of "Le Garage" started playing, and the Futureheads came out. The place was pretty full, and people cheered.
The Futureheads, whether you like their music or not, know what they are doing - they are an exceptionally skilled band. Don't let anyone tell you that punk can't be complex. They played their songs, with interlocking melodies, four-part harmonies, and huge shifts in energy, all perfectly together, and could stop on a dime. They changed the arrangements for a few songs, including "Decent Days and Nights" and "A to B", to better suit their live show. They played a great new song "about crime", entitled "Area". During their encore, they covered Television Personalities' "Picture of Dorian Gray", and it rocked [can someone hook us up with an MP3 please?]. They've also got their stage banter down pat. It was just a great, fun show, with really exceptional music. I could have sworn it sounded like there were five guitars on stage at times. See them if you can.
I took some photos, when I could get a shot around the over-six-foot tall guy and his DAD. You can click on a few of them for larger versions.
5 comments:
The Futureheads put on an incredible show, for sure. Nice photos too!
Here's their cover of A Picture of Dorian Gray, it's a yousendit link.
The Futureheads - A Picture of Dorian Gray
wow, thanks!
The only downside for this show was that nobody would get out of their "Oh, I'm too good for this so I'm not going to move - maybe I'll bobble my head to the beat".
YOU KNOW WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!
They play dancy music.
IT IS FUN TO DANCE TO!
Good lordy...
i dont count throwing elbows and jumping on other people as dancing! and comparatively it wasn't that bad. people were moving around. but dancing at shows isnt always a good thing. e.g. the idiots who fucking LOVED the last moving units show.
you should check out the high speed scene CD, if you have a few minutes. the first song is a bit boring -- sort of like weezer, but singing about high school, which is a pet peeve of mine (get over high school, people). the second song is pretty fun, though.
i agree that the shout out louds were much, much better when they were doing their upbeat numbers. i love swedish emo, but the slow numbers were boring.
nice photos.
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