Spider Kitten Vs Atomck
Up the rickety stairs, let battle commence. Tonight is a game of three thirds. The first, courtesy of Spider Kitten. The second, Atomck. The third, both bands in doom drone wonderland. This is all in aid of a brilliant split album/ep? released on Sharp Noodle Recordings.
The tubes glow. Hear that rumble? It means Spider Kitten have taken the amps off standby. You are now welcome in. The song is “Sensual Predator” and its spot-on. ‘Sensual‘- synth strings intro, a soundtrack to any great 80’s thriller movie (not horror may I add, this suggests it requires more thought). Richie, braided hair, rag-an’-bone boots, delivers a sincere vocal down le microphone which I believe, is then controlled by anonymous man at back with delay pedal. The words seems to hover on top like fuzz dust, leaving one syllable memories behind. The swing beat becomes upbeat and we have now hit a maximus harmonicus dance-off. For a minute, bizarrely, this could be early New Order minus the chorus pedal. Any reality of this is soon cut (literally), like a walkman runs out of batteries.
‘Predator’– what comes up, must surely come down. Up meaning hope. Down meaning down. Right down. How low can you go and still remain audible. This low. In good ‘ole Spider Kitten fashion, we have short bpm’s, thunderous bass/guitar, crash cymbals and refreshingly, a saxophone. This really is the darker side of the moon. Tonight, they play one song only. I was rather bewildered.
Pop-pickers, its Atomck next. Grindcore? Black Metal? Aids ridden unwanted children of annoying fat people who blame metabolism for their uncontrolled lard shovelling? There is three of them. Linus, Luke & Lenny The Unstoppable Drum I-Pod. Its very technical stuff. I deem technical to be the ability to burst into riff without any cues. Thats clever. Its a mashup of continuous tempo changes, chugs, power chords and intricate fret tapping. Thats just the arse end. The big not-so-smiley face at the front is the vocal delivery. Linus, arched back, spews lyrics from the lower intestines. This seems to be aided by wrapping the microphone several times around your neck and as a gag across your mouth (as seen in select underground Japan movies). You almost feel dirty when entertained by an Atomck live show.
I then consume some very sloppy curry sauce & rice over the road and check out the weather forecast for China. Its going to be sunny.
Not for long…
Both bands take to the stage. Linus (Atomck) switches from vocals to guitar, Richie (Spider Kitten) takes a seat, guitar and delay pedal in lap. Two others stay stage right, they have long hair, they shall indeed r-o-c-k for this. Anonymous guy at the back is armed with saxophone & laptop. He remains anonymous, back to the crowd.
The jam slowly trickles in. Warbling plucked notes from each member in turn. A steady 3 note bass lick stands as the only recognisable contribution that this is indeed music and not the sound of satans ice-cream van chime.
In true post-rock-esque fashion, there is no immediate rush. A good five minutes of single picked notes while all the time, a sinister undercurrent is whirling its way through. It needs a reason to escape. That reason come in the form of four computer generated crash cymbals and we are in. Its huge. This climax is deserving of such patience that proceeded it. One by one, each member leaves the confines of the stage. Backs to the crowd they orchestrate their creation, somewhat admiring the hurricane 4×12 choir. I was waiting for the Status Quo moment but it never came. Instead, I was given The Night of the Triffids.
Who won the battle? Everyone.
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Further Reading…
Anonymous Man, in fact, has a name. Anonymous Man was used to add drama to this review.
My girlfriend had tooth ache from the vibration. Tonight, it goes beyond sound.
Walkman!
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This didn’t have the audience it deserved, but you are offered a second chance. The jam at the end was recorded and will show up on the Sharp Noodle Website very soon.
