Lightning Bolt @ Brudenell Social Club
By Simon GlackenThe venue is slowly starting to fill when Like a kind of Matador take to the stage. A trio comprising of a guitarist, a drummer and a flutist who then proceed to produce some mighty fine concept rock. They started to play and suddenly people began to turn round and observe this strange sight. Never before in my life have I rocked out to the sounds of a flute but tonight I did and loved every second of it. As I began to get into the music more people started to come forward. This was something very special indeed. The band take a riff and then manage to span it over the period of twenty five minutes with thundering drums and a guitar so over driven that it made my guts rumble. Throw in a sheet of metal, the occasional chant and piano segment and you get the phenomenally refreshing Like a Kind of Matador who surprisingly hail from Leeds.
Wolves! (of Greece) appear on stage with a front man who looks similar to Rivers Cuomo so I was beginning to expect some up beat catchy pop rock when the band suddenly exploded and became a health and safety issue to themselves and my ears. This was hard hitting and unpredictable stuff to watch, the band full of so much energy jumping about and having spasms all over the place. It was great to see but at times they produced a wall of sound so big that the vocalist was unable to climb over it no matter how much he screamed and wailed.
Bilge Pump happen to be label mates with the Wolves! (of Greece) and they also happen to have a lead singer who looks like he could be in an emo band. However like the previous band this is anything but emo. Loud unadulterated rock with huge bass lines that rumble through the whole venue. The drummer assaults his kit while the other two members produce music similar to Primus but a hell of a lot heavier. The only thing that is wrong with this performance is that the vocals are lost behind all the noise, which is a bit of a let down. Still another amazing set from this noiserock trio.
Now usually when the final support act finishes we get to visit the toilet, grab a beer and reflect on what has happened so far, while the headlining band start to carry out numerous sound checks. But this is Lightning Bolt and in their world sound checks are for pussies. As soon a Bilge Pump finish Lightning Bolt's drummer appears in the right hand corner of the room, standing on his drums, green mask covering his face. You see Lightning Bolt don't play on the stage, they just drag their kit onto the floor and start playing. Everyone looks round wondering where the hell they appeared from, people rush across to gather around the band and so the show begins. It's loud, it's fast, it's mind blowing, it's Lightning Bolt. The drummer with a distorted microphone in his mouth screams and wails while his partner in crime plays his thundering bass arpeggios at an amazing volume. Tracks like Dracula Mountain are a joy to watch, this is noise but it is beautifully crafted, intricate noise. How two men called Brian can make this much of a racket is baffling but this is part of the appeal.
Once they finish the drummer is dripping with sweat after almost an hour of non-stop barrages of drumbeats. He runs off to grab some air while his band mate is left to deal with questions and hand shakes from overjoyed fans. I myself managed to pick up a broken drumstick that shows the marks of a hard nights work. As I leave the other Brian is outside and he regales my self and friends of his time spent with John Peel the previous night and how cool the Japanese are.
Lightning Bolt, best show of 2004, possibly the greatest of all time. Two guys that work very hard.
