With several local promoters joining forces for this evening it was always going to provide an interesting collaboration, however I missed the opening act due to the early stage time but having seen Protein Window several times previously I can only imagine it was another top performance delivered in their unique style.
For myself then it was down to Navaho to begin with, another local band although not one I recall seeing previously so as always was good to check out new local music. They sound fairly old school when all members are on stage, in that it’s more reminiscent of the grunge seen than the punk/emo tag they give themselves but then they balance this well against the more instrumental numbers and I will be sure to keep an eye out for Navaho in the future.
Having escaped from the confounds of the Isle of Wight I can imagine the evenings next act Godard are either part of a thriving music scene on the island that needs more exposure, or a band formed out of frustration at the fact few major bands make the trip over other than for the yearly festival. Either way Godard performed their shouty pop-punk in a way that followed on well from Navaho that came before them, whilst showing what they were about in their own right.
With it getting closers to the headliners, local band Attack! Vipers! had the penultimate slot for the night and were no doubt the heaviest band on the bill. Despite a rough couple of tracks to open with (due to broken pedals and bass player also happily taking part responsibility) they certainly stepped the proceedings up a gear once they got going and it was great to see them again after their gigs earlier in the year had been over on foreign shores.
The singer from Attack! Vipers! also took time out from prowling along the front row of the crowd to express how pleased they were to be supporting Self Defense Family, and it was then that you knew there was something special about how the promoters had clubbed together.
So onto the reason why we were all here on a Tuesday night, America’s Self Defense Family had been delayed on their travels from mainland Europe but were excited to have arrived and their enthusiasm came across when their frontman addressed the crowd, despite misguided influences turning him into a Millwall fan there was a sense of humour about the banter and all well received.
Although plenty of chat this was still very much about the music with Self Defense Family being more subtle than the support before them and the three guitars provide a hypnotic backdrop to the rants of their spoken word vocals and were a pleasure to watch.
It’s a combination that works really well and the fact the night didn’t have a specific direction in terms of genre showed how this six piece from the other side of the pond aren’t easily pigeon holed, having concluded a great evening of entertainment proving what the underground scene is capable of when like-minded people pull together to make it happen.
Mr Teeth
Words by yours truly, guest pictures used courtesy of Pantha Photography: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Pantha/195937350539742?fref=ts
