live

Rip It Up, Issue 171, 1 October 1991, Page 36

live

BAILTER SPACE THIS WILL KILL THAT, LUSHBURGER Gluepot, October 5. Lushburger have a great name. It suggests a consumer product that's irresistable but perilously unhealthy, or mediocre candy-punks Lush put through a mincer and fed to the paying public. It's a shame they don't attempt anything so antisocial in their music: they sound something like a more aggressive version of JPSE circa 'B9, with lithe, constantly shifting rhythms and engagingly hyperactive guitar. This is fast becoming the standard formula for local guitar bands and it's by no means a bad one, but in Lushburger's hands tonight it sounds a bit thin — the guitar almost lost in the mix, the sampler grossly under-used, and the vocals less than charismatic. They're still way ahead of most Auckland bands, but they urgently need another member to give them more depth of sound and I or some stage presence. This Will Kill That are another three-piece but they transcend the line-up's limitations by being a band possessed. The first Gordon's album is the obvious reference point, but their tendency to mix up their bass-heavy avalanches with cavernous, ominous silences also owes something to the heaviest Sabbath-derived metal. While he's playing the singer/guitarist is an arrogant young sufferer taking bloody revenge on the world, although his diffident between song "thank yous" to the audience spoil the effect a bit. The only other criticism I can think of is that the wistful melodies that occassionally surface are an unnecessary softener of their otherwise pure blows. Apart from that their fury is quite magnificent; bleed to it at a friendly drinking establishment near you. And then Bailter Space come on and within twenty seconds of a reinvented

'Our Aim' demolish every theory about youth taking over from (relative) age that a critic might have been thinking about making up. They play in Auckland so infrequently that it's possible to be overwhelmed anew by the dimensions of their sound every tiime. We all know by now that Alister Parker tours with a huge arsenal of guitars, but the unearthly complexity of the noise he creates causes one to

suspect that he's got an army of disciples playing them behind the curtain. Another thing: the supposed trance-like nature of their music is now legend or cliche depending on your point of view, but paying too much

attention to it obscures the fact that many of their songs, especially those sung by John Halvorsen, exude an immense amount of cold, hard anger. But ultimately describing a force that works so exclusively on the semi-conscious, pre-linguistic parts of the brain is futile. Our time would be better spent organising round the clock pickets outside the offices of Record Label That's Been On Nightline Flying Nun, demanding copies of the new album NOW! MATTHEWHYLAND

JANE'S ADDICTION Town Hall, September 13. f * After hearing the praise for the Friday evening performance I was determined to see what would probably be my last Jane's Addiction performance (and incidentally my first). I was to be disappointed. Rumblefish performed well their show was flawed by an inadequate sound mix. 'Pull Up To The Bumped was their highlight and is sure to be a successful single. They are very lucky to be given a second chance at these highly sought after support slots. The sound mix improved only fractionally for Jane's Addiction. Perry Farrell threw bouquets into the audience and the madness had begun. Mr Farrell is a figure of absurdity. Dressed in PVC he gyrates across a small area, the perfect freak for the .... strange musical concoction that is Jane's Addiction. It is this total blending of styles that makes them so hard to swallow.

Jane's Addiction are not the legend they've been made out to be. This particular performance seemed to be a case of going through the motions and was only rescued by excellent

musical talents in the form of Eric Avery on bass and Stephen Perkins on drums. The renditions of Three Days' and 'Been Caught Stealing' were exuberant but only managed to place the concert in the satisfactory category. The material from Ritual De Lo Habitual was not as consistent live as the Nothing Shocking songs, of which 'Mountain Song' and the interesting encore 'Janes Says' worked best. It was just disheartening that a good club band could get so popular on their egotistical quest for supposed musical integrity. Jane's Addiction are as much a product of Los Angeles as Motley Crue. The world will not end when JA split up. The saying goes "Those who cannot play, criticise"' but it seems fair to say that in this instance Jane's Addiction did not deliver the goods. LUKE CASEY

FRIENDS OF THE EARTHCONSCIOUS PARTY New Carpark, Sept 29. The gig seemed like a way of promoting a good cause and I'm sure that's what most of the bands thought when they agreed to perform for free. However, I'm sure I wasn't the only one surprised to discover that Friends of the Earth was actually a retail shop in Cuba Street. In other words, the so-called "charity gig" was probably paying the rent for some enterprising Wellingtonians rather than saving the whales. Aside from this revelation the night was a good idea. From 3pm till 2am the evening was filled with some of Wellington's top bands. I arrived at 9pm hoping to catch the "big" acts. Bad anticipation on my part — the gig was running three hours behind schedule. Not a good start to the night. Nevertheless I settled down to hear the Inhalers perform their brand of melodic pop humour that I have come to enjoy so much on Nightline, the fun fur jackets were a bonus. The Spirals played next, it was enjoyable for the first couple of songs but the jangly guitar and endless wailing got irritating pretty fast. The

crowded Carpark started to pulsate when Skapa took to the stage, those boys (and that girl) play some of the best ska music around. For an eight piece they have the presence of a big band with a stream of energetic dance songs accompanied by a tight horn section. The three hour delay became glaringly obvious when Skapa played for 40 minutes and there were still three bands to go. Emulsifier kicked off the "hip hop" set with 'Juan Tasting', decked out in their billowing white safety suits they looked like dancing condoms. And the way they danced looked like dancing nerds. A short punchy set featuring only their hip hop side, no rock music, no instruments. Wellington newcomers Gifted and Brown took to the stage next and rapped divinely to some of the best original backing music I've heard in a very long time. Somehow they need to get a major sponsorship deal from Stussy, every item of clothing they wore bore the logo. The four piece comprised three energetic yet poetic rappers and a DJ. If you get the ' opportunity to see these guys live don't pass it up. Finally Aucklanders MC OJ and Rhythm Slave gave us their tight rhymes to some pretty polished stage moves. For just two guys they make a lotta noise and it was a shame they couldn't perform earlier so more people could've enjoyed them. The lighting from Grouse has to take the credit for making half the acts look like rock stars. The moral? Good lighting and good bands make a "good cause" seem worthwhile. KAY McMAHON BABES IN THE MOOD Bats Theatre, October 1. This show had it all. That about sums it up really. Five women from Wellington are Babes in the Mood: Jackie Clarke (Putty, Nightline etc), Robyn Nathan (When The Cat's Been

Spayed), Janet Roddick (Six Volts), Charlotte Yates (Charlotte Sometimes) and Fiona Samual (no band but lots of plays). For 90 minutes they danced, sang and acted their way through a vibrant and energetic stage show which was funnier than any New Zealand TV comedy has ever come close to. It opened with the 'Sisters of Demented Ecstasy', the women all decked out in nuns' costumes singing a gospel version of Hot Chocolate's 'You Sexy Thing'. This put the audience in a loose frame of mind and by the end of the show people were exhausted from laughing so much. From here the Babes did a groovy ’ version of 'Black Betty' which ended with Charlotte Yates playing some > excellent, dare I say, metal lead f breaks on her electric guitar. The cafe scene was a conversation made up with snatches of songs from 'Me and Mrs Jones' to the Communards' 'Don't Leave Me This Way', a brilliant act that showed all five performers can remember lots of songs. Fiona Samuel was a delightful surprise, not only did she bring an element of comedy with her array of characters but she could sing extremely too. She sung a Latino version of 'Opportunit/ that was reminiscent of the Benny Hill era. The Babes proved they can do it better than any bloke, and they made it seem easy. The Weather Girls' song, a la Penelope Barr, was yet another parody, complete with musical breasts. A wonderful 1940's theme tune 'By A Waterfall' was the highlight of the show — the girls doing synchronised swimming, without any water. The costumes were fantastic and this was true particularly of the last song — There Ain't Nothing Like A Dame'. The show was all-encompassing really— it had fantastic music and well sung songs, funny interludes and even

a rap, sung by Jackie Clarke. My only hope is that they'll put out a Babes in the Mood music video so everyone can benefit from some wonderfully crafted Kiwi ingenuity. KAY McMAHON

FEAST OF THE FLOWERING NIGHT Film and Performance Arcadia, August 23. . Maff Hyland should probably be reviewing this; because he's into this "rock" being a dirty word groove, which most of the people here share, whereas me... well, shit — it's the word I whisper to get to sleep at nights, and you know I wake up screaming it. Plus I'm one of these losers who can't stand being in a room full of people who all wear the same clothes and dig the same movies, books and music. Strange that a scene which staunchly promotes individuality and freedom comes across to outsiders as being just another example of conformity. I ; . ■ mean, is a Psychic TV fan whose two - favourite authors are Ballard and Burroughs any less of a cliched stereotype than, say... a straightedge skateboarder? ■ Anyway... first performance I . witnessed was some guy painting a picture while accompanying muzak ’, and lights flickered. Nothing I really wanna say about this except I didn't ' like his painting. Next up was Obcession which consisted of a guy who looked like he was on his way to do some burglary, hunched over a Korg synth doodling away over > sequenced beats. Jazz meets funk meets "smoked so much cheeb I don't even notice the audience and what in hell are these white and black tiles for well fuggit I'm gonna hit a few". Shame mushroom season had just finished. In between acts they started showing some Brent Hayward films — and maybe if I hadn't cut my dick off four years ago I would "get it" but I really don't see Brent's "point", same way I . don't see R. Kern's "point". Brent's filming techniques are pretty good and a couple of the films impressed me—- — was about ten seconds of greatness, while another longer film, featuring Dave Hornblow as a goon and Brent as the funniest toughguy badass since Pacino in Scarface, had : some hilarious moments. But all the rest just bored and confused me. Same thing goes for the Nick Cave plays which were in the same vein as Brent's : own films and need no separate comment. Unfortunately. Highlight of the night, of course, was the merger of warmongers Affliction Addiction and New Flesh, uniting under the banner Afflicted Flesh with help from Simon Rumblefish, who jumped around pretending the bass he was fistfucking wasn't mixed so low only dogs could hear it, while the boys stalked the stage throwing anger and '. hatred at the world and singing songs about using Milli Vanilli's genitalia to make drum skins (Afflicted Flesh are all about taking no prisoners). Listen you fucks... instead of sitting at home comparing Ministry and Killing Joke with yer friends — come and see these two before they kill themselves— or better yet, you. Especially if the merger continues. Last up was Hubby doing his Compulsory Joy thang ... the alternative to the alternative or just the postpunk Gary Numan? Whatever... the surprising truth is that Bruce Hubbard did have the song of the night. In amongst total shit like the embarassing 'Crash Love' a great song like 'Airel Fuel' sounds even better than on BFM. What a fuckin' infectious little bassline it has. I bet some of the . neo Goths present almost started jiggling their white n'tight asses in rhythmic abandon. But not quite. Not

here kids. Looking back on my review I realise it seems that the night may have been semi-interesting ... but apart from A.Flesh it was really just one big fuckin' bore. KID COLDSLAW TRANSVISION VAMP Auckland Town Hall, Oct 9 The pissy weather on this Auckland spring night can't be solely blamed for the poor 800 heads turnout. Those that did show up divided into two and a half groups. Group one were the people with an honest interest in the music and owned more than just the first and last single. The second group were the Wendy James harem. The half group were the industry types, holding up the bar and wearing a Heinecken as a badge of office. The first 75 percent of the show was just a "run through, do the songs, then we can go" type of affair. The whole band came on looking shagged out and uncomfortable. Ms James' links between songs had the same cringe factor as Arnold's thumbs-up at the end of Terminator 2. All through the show Ms James was the focus of attention and near the end the enthusiasm of the crowd actually sunk in. The energy level increased as the Vamp hit the better tracks off the latest album. Finally charged up from the raucous crowd, Tranvision Vamp returned the energy via two slamming encores, ending with'l Want Your Love". A damn fine shame they didn't start the show like they ended it, but hey, Wendy said they'd be back and I believe her and you would too, if you'd seen the economy size grin to the keyboardist, with that "Can you believe this shit!" look. HANSHOEFLICH BOLOBOLO (Bill Direen) Crown Hotel, Dunedin, Sept 15. The Crown Hotel has had an image lift since last year. Cabaret tables give the venue more space and the bar has been painted a lighter colour making it a very pleasant intimate venue. Bill Direen is a prolific artist, theatre ensemble creator, record maker and he makes damn fine songs. Tonight he sported a large black trilby and two Wellingtonians from scattered Earth Telephone — Brian Tressider on drums, and Kirsten Winserra on keyboards. The first set was formal. Bill Direen is the master of a finely tuned song. Like Graeme Downes, Bill Direen has an excellent ear for musical arrangements and instrumental interplay. He knows how to take a good pop song and give it a twist, juxtaposing morbid lyrics against catchy country and western bass lines or introducing Weill snatches into songs giving them really a classic horror feel. Later in the second set the performance got wilder and some of the Bill's older classics thrashed out to meet us, 'Alligatori still being my personal favourite. It's interesting to watch him push raw emotion into his songs and he's the only guy I've met so far who can scream to a country beat. Both Brian and Kristen excel even in the fiddly early stages of the gig. They have no problem adapting to all the stylistic and tempo and instrumental changes. Bolobolo's styles of music range from gamboling pop songs, simple sad ballads and rockin' country to crazy Doors style instrumentals. John Dix called Bill Direen a "cult figure" and also said that some people called him a genius. The band is a gem and he's great to watch and listen to. Do yourself a favour and go see them at Trekkers (in Wellington) every second Saturday night.

CATH CLARKE