Maccabees live at Lennon's, Southampton
Thursday, January 19, 2006
Maccabees live at Lennon's Category
Originally published at: http://www.southscene.net/reviews/live/article.php?id=2763
Entering Lennon’s is a bit like entering a Tardis, the surrounding run-down area gives no suggestion as to what lies within. This is my first visit and I’m impressed by the awkward friendliness of it all. A tiny stage in one corner and a makeshift dance floor in the centre, and of course a bar on the opposite side. I order a drink. I ask for cashback. They forget to give me the cashback but don’t forget to charge me for the transaction, but the less said about that the better.
The crowd start to congregate around the stage as Dais Corporation set up. The bass sound drowns everything else out, which is when I realize there is no bassist, nor a drummer. The drum and bass loop supports two drifty guitars that entertains but gets a bit repetitive. I hope for change and I get it when the two lads are joined by a striking blonde who straps on a guitar and looks out at the crowd absently. In fact all three of them have an absent look on their faces that suggests arrogance, but could just as easily be nerves.
The front man stomps on the loop pedal to start another similar drifty number, as the other guitarist dons a bass guitar. It’s all pretty uninteresting, and the crowd starts to chat amongst themselves and the big-haired lad is visibly peeved. A few songs later they beef it up a bit with something a bit rockier, but this only served in providing the front man with a reason to play a bit more aggressively and finish the set by smashing his axe on the floor, storming through the crowd to hug his mate stood just behind me. An odd way to finish a gig, and no way to impress potential fans and groupies (maybe I’m just being old-fashioned, if I wasn’t stone sober I probably would have shook the guys hand for it).
In between bands I realize that this little club is pretty packed, and the buzz surrounding the Maccabees suggests why. Steve Lemacq tips them for the top, or so the posters all over the place claim. I order a coke and find a nice pillar to lean on. I’ve never heard this band before and I want them to win me over.
The drummer is blocked from view by the other four band members who line up with supreme confidence, full of energy and polished showmanship from the off. They’re an odd-looking bunch, with cardigans and football shirts side-by-side. It’s hard to pigeon-hole them in terms of appearance, which can only be a good thing. I ignore theories that one of them looks a bit like Mark from Peep Show. Nobody deserves that kind of comparison.
The performance is tight and the sound is impressive for such a tiny venue. The singer shifts and twitches like Ian Curtis without the epilepsy (I presume), and the other members hammer their instruments with gusto. The tunes reek of Maximo Park, Bloc Party and Razorlight, but they’re great little tunes in their own right and don’t deserve such flippant comparisons (shame on me). The crowd responds with unanimous approval of every song, and a good number of them sing along to the single X-Ray, evidence that the Lamacq plug isn’t just for advertising purposes.
Amazingly the energy is kept up throughout, and afterwards there is a real sense of everybody being united in having witnessed something a little bit special. The band hang around in the bar as the DJ takes over, chatting to fans new and old with the sort of genuine friendliness that doesn’t make me feel like a fan boy for shaking a guitarist’s hand. ‘Check us out on myspace’, he suggests, a phrase you tend to hear a lot at small gigs like this. For once though, I think I will, and I suggest you do the same.
Check out the Maccabees at www.myspace.com/themaccabees
© Matt S.
Maccabees live at Lennon's Category
Originally published at: http://www.southscene.net/reviews/live/article.php?id=2763
Entering Lennon’s is a bit like entering a Tardis, the surrounding run-down area gives no suggestion as to what lies within. This is my first visit and I’m impressed by the awkward friendliness of it all. A tiny stage in one corner and a makeshift dance floor in the centre, and of course a bar on the opposite side. I order a drink. I ask for cashback. They forget to give me the cashback but don’t forget to charge me for the transaction, but the less said about that the better.
The crowd start to congregate around the stage as Dais Corporation set up. The bass sound drowns everything else out, which is when I realize there is no bassist, nor a drummer. The drum and bass loop supports two drifty guitars that entertains but gets a bit repetitive. I hope for change and I get it when the two lads are joined by a striking blonde who straps on a guitar and looks out at the crowd absently. In fact all three of them have an absent look on their faces that suggests arrogance, but could just as easily be nerves.
The front man stomps on the loop pedal to start another similar drifty number, as the other guitarist dons a bass guitar. It’s all pretty uninteresting, and the crowd starts to chat amongst themselves and the big-haired lad is visibly peeved. A few songs later they beef it up a bit with something a bit rockier, but this only served in providing the front man with a reason to play a bit more aggressively and finish the set by smashing his axe on the floor, storming through the crowd to hug his mate stood just behind me. An odd way to finish a gig, and no way to impress potential fans and groupies (maybe I’m just being old-fashioned, if I wasn’t stone sober I probably would have shook the guys hand for it).
In between bands I realize that this little club is pretty packed, and the buzz surrounding the Maccabees suggests why. Steve Lemacq tips them for the top, or so the posters all over the place claim. I order a coke and find a nice pillar to lean on. I’ve never heard this band before and I want them to win me over.
The drummer is blocked from view by the other four band members who line up with supreme confidence, full of energy and polished showmanship from the off. They’re an odd-looking bunch, with cardigans and football shirts side-by-side. It’s hard to pigeon-hole them in terms of appearance, which can only be a good thing. I ignore theories that one of them looks a bit like Mark from Peep Show. Nobody deserves that kind of comparison.
The performance is tight and the sound is impressive for such a tiny venue. The singer shifts and twitches like Ian Curtis without the epilepsy (I presume), and the other members hammer their instruments with gusto. The tunes reek of Maximo Park, Bloc Party and Razorlight, but they’re great little tunes in their own right and don’t deserve such flippant comparisons (shame on me). The crowd responds with unanimous approval of every song, and a good number of them sing along to the single X-Ray, evidence that the Lamacq plug isn’t just for advertising purposes.
Amazingly the energy is kept up throughout, and afterwards there is a real sense of everybody being united in having witnessed something a little bit special. The band hang around in the bar as the DJ takes over, chatting to fans new and old with the sort of genuine friendliness that doesn’t make me feel like a fan boy for shaking a guitarist’s hand. ‘Check us out on myspace’, he suggests, a phrase you tend to hear a lot at small gigs like this. For once though, I think I will, and I suggest you do the same.
Check out the Maccabees at www.myspace.com/themaccabees
© Matt S.
posted by Matthew Simpson | 9:34 PM
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