Red Go Green Stop @ Cockpit
By Kate ZezulkaAnd The Return aren't content to merely execute the clichéd climbing the speaker stacks. Instead, frontman Dale Stacey insists on coming out into the audience to climb on the Cockpit's bar. This incident is a fair representation of their whole attitude: everything in excess, exaggerating stereotypes largely in the name of showmanship. This is particularly the case with Stacey's stage presence as well as his often histrionic vocal style, but it also remains true musically - the surplus of kick in most drum grooves is almost self-parodying and certainly an extreme example of typical hardcore-metal drum parts, while certain chord progressions and powerchords alternating with basic arpeggio figures are more an emo archetype. Their approach means nothing is half-hearted and they pull out all the stops live.
Armstrong match well with And The Return's ethic: again, there's no space for sloppiness or inertia. It's a high-octane performance well suited to their terse power-pop; the material itself is nicely melodic and, although not really groundbreaking, their energetic set adds more than enough freshness to the tracks themselves. Vocalist Tim Talbot's syrupy yet strong voice is one of the band's best assets, an immediate clincher that adds to Armstrong's accessibility, and the band's reliable instrumental skill puts considerable punch behind this. Another enthusiastic and entertaining set.
This heat truly has been good for attention-grabbing stage personas, with Red Go Green Stop rounding off the night in much the same high-spirited manner as the two preceding bands. They may be a little too electro-ska-punk for some, but there's no escaping Anna Hetherington's striking frontwoman capabilities. Alternating her R.P vocals with some squalling sax (although admittedly a slightly out of tune squalling sax), she keeps the audience engaged almost effortlessly as well as accentuating Red Go Green Stop's more individual attributes. The unusually spiky, rasping sound of the band could easily be considered jarring, but nobody at the Cockpit seems to take this side; in fact, most of the room is dancing frenziedly.
