Be Your Own PET @ Wedgewood Rooms 7/04/06
Be Your Own Pet w. Room 99 @ Wedgewood Rooms 7/04/06
Originally posted at http://www.disordermagazine.com/article.php?id=199
Having never been to a daytime gig before (apart from festivals) it is with cautious apprehension that I enter the Wedge tonight. Sunlight pours through the small areas of skylight in the top of the venue, the place is full of youngsters celebrating the freedom that the Easter holiday brings, and it feels just plain wrong to be drinking at this time. Guinness for lunch? What a curious prospect. I get asked for I.D. at which point I laugh loudly and involuntarily. Im 22 so I present my driving license with a sort of merry glee that seems to irritate the barman; something that doesnt really bother me as I wont be drinking all that much at 1.30 in the afternoon anyway.
The first band of the afternoon get underway at around 2pm, a time that Im not sure is early or late in the scheme of things. These strange times arent restricted by curfews or bar licenses so I suppose bands just play when they feel like it. Before Room 99 strike a note it is clear that they look the part; 4 unruly looking punks with slick back hair, flat caps and wide stances. Once they begin playing however the menacing image is betrayed, as the performance is not even remotely as fierce as the second guitarists quiff is tall.
The tall tattooed singer looks more coy than intimidating, closing his eyes whenever he sings and turning his face away from the crowd at every other opportunity. Every member of the band is set quite far back from the edge of the stage and show no sign of wanted to get any closer to the crowd; they may as well be in another room for the amount of band-audience interaction that goes on. What about the music?! I hear you cry. Well theres a reason why I havent mentioned it thus far. It is uninspirational hardcore punk performed with little to no feeling or conviction at all. Music of this aggression requires a certain amount of gusto behind it, of which Room 99 display none.
After quite a lengthy wait (due to local support the Waysters pulling out) Be Your Own PET take to the stage. Having heard a few tracks before I have a rough idea of what to expect, however the precision and controlled fury with which the material is performed is something that no amount of listening to their debut self-titled album can prepare me for. The instrumentalists thrash around with just as much enthusiasm as the horde of young fans that have sold out the Wedge today; perhaps because of the similarities in age but more likely due to the downright danceability of their punky party anthems. Everybodys having fun, but then after half an hour disaster strikes. Hecklers unleash their hilarious fury.
In a musical gap meant for song requesting (there is no set list) a small group of lads begin chanting get your tits out; which doesnt go down all that well with BYOPs phenomenal vocalist (seriously, her voice has amazing punk edge) Jemina. Her eyes fill with rage and she insists every male member of the audience eats a dick, before accusing all British men of having small penis and informing us that the next fury-fuelled tune will be their last. After barking out the final song the microphone is catapulted into the floor and most of the band storm off, leaving the guitarist to meekly thank the audience before scurrying after them.
Now there are two schools of thought here. The first damns the 20 or so geezers who cut the set four songs short for everybody else and involves elements of feminism, equality and so such. The other reminds us that a sold out Wedgewood Rooms deserves a full set, heckling is part and parcel of performing, and therefore the band should just grow a sense of humour or learn to deal with it. Both are perfectly valid viewpoints and quite frankly I am torn, however Im not all that bothered as I still got to see the fantastic Bunk Trunk Skunk and We Will Vacation, You Can Be My Parasol played live. I just hope this doesnt scare them off playing Portsmouth again. If they do and you are anywhere near you have to check them out, because to see Be Your Own PET live is to fully understand what theyre about.
Matt S.
Originally posted at http://www.disordermagazine.com/article.php?id=199
Having never been to a daytime gig before (apart from festivals) it is with cautious apprehension that I enter the Wedge tonight. Sunlight pours through the small areas of skylight in the top of the venue, the place is full of youngsters celebrating the freedom that the Easter holiday brings, and it feels just plain wrong to be drinking at this time. Guinness for lunch? What a curious prospect. I get asked for I.D. at which point I laugh loudly and involuntarily. Im 22 so I present my driving license with a sort of merry glee that seems to irritate the barman; something that doesnt really bother me as I wont be drinking all that much at 1.30 in the afternoon anyway.
The first band of the afternoon get underway at around 2pm, a time that Im not sure is early or late in the scheme of things. These strange times arent restricted by curfews or bar licenses so I suppose bands just play when they feel like it. Before Room 99 strike a note it is clear that they look the part; 4 unruly looking punks with slick back hair, flat caps and wide stances. Once they begin playing however the menacing image is betrayed, as the performance is not even remotely as fierce as the second guitarists quiff is tall.
The tall tattooed singer looks more coy than intimidating, closing his eyes whenever he sings and turning his face away from the crowd at every other opportunity. Every member of the band is set quite far back from the edge of the stage and show no sign of wanted to get any closer to the crowd; they may as well be in another room for the amount of band-audience interaction that goes on. What about the music?! I hear you cry. Well theres a reason why I havent mentioned it thus far. It is uninspirational hardcore punk performed with little to no feeling or conviction at all. Music of this aggression requires a certain amount of gusto behind it, of which Room 99 display none.
After quite a lengthy wait (due to local support the Waysters pulling out) Be Your Own PET take to the stage. Having heard a few tracks before I have a rough idea of what to expect, however the precision and controlled fury with which the material is performed is something that no amount of listening to their debut self-titled album can prepare me for. The instrumentalists thrash around with just as much enthusiasm as the horde of young fans that have sold out the Wedge today; perhaps because of the similarities in age but more likely due to the downright danceability of their punky party anthems. Everybodys having fun, but then after half an hour disaster strikes. Hecklers unleash their hilarious fury.
In a musical gap meant for song requesting (there is no set list) a small group of lads begin chanting get your tits out; which doesnt go down all that well with BYOPs phenomenal vocalist (seriously, her voice has amazing punk edge) Jemina. Her eyes fill with rage and she insists every male member of the audience eats a dick, before accusing all British men of having small penis and informing us that the next fury-fuelled tune will be their last. After barking out the final song the microphone is catapulted into the floor and most of the band storm off, leaving the guitarist to meekly thank the audience before scurrying after them.
Now there are two schools of thought here. The first damns the 20 or so geezers who cut the set four songs short for everybody else and involves elements of feminism, equality and so such. The other reminds us that a sold out Wedgewood Rooms deserves a full set, heckling is part and parcel of performing, and therefore the band should just grow a sense of humour or learn to deal with it. Both are perfectly valid viewpoints and quite frankly I am torn, however Im not all that bothered as I still got to see the fantastic Bunk Trunk Skunk and We Will Vacation, You Can Be My Parasol played live. I just hope this doesnt scare them off playing Portsmouth again. If they do and you are anywhere near you have to check them out, because to see Be Your Own PET live is to fully understand what theyre about.
Matt S.
posted by Matthew Simpson | 9:49 PM
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