Alexisonfire, I Killed TheProm Queen, Hot Lies, MereTheory, Taking Sides @ ManningBar, 27/11/04

Wed 1st Dec, 2004 in Gig Reviews

Do you like it loud? Perhaps fast? Well you should have been at the Manning Bar on Saturday for Alexisonfire and the six other monster bands for seven hours of screaming music madness!

Grand Fatal were impressive as always playing early in the line up to a reasonable sized crowd. The weather in Sydney was amazingly balmy, the show started at 2pm so punters could be forgiven for clinging to the balconies and craning their necks to see the stage while downing a coldie.

Taking Sides were the first band to really catch my eye and even at the end of the night stood out. They took to the stage with the lead singer pacing the stage with a crazy look in his eye like he was spoiling for a fight. The crowd loved them, they were super charged and really got the room pumped. They were tattooed, babyfaced, angry and awesome! Their songs were strong, loud, ferocious and delivered with a brutal energy that made the band that followed look like P-Plate pop-rock.  

Poor Mere Theory, they were pretty good but the crowd were noticeable deflated after Taking Sides. Mere Theory should have been on before Taking Sides as they were more melody driven and took the crowd back a gear when they should have built on the momentum that was gathering. Where the singer from Taking Sides paced the stage backwards and forwards, Mere Theory’s singer demonstrated why mics have cords, so the singer doesn’t get lost while wandering aimlessly around the stage and managing to look genuinely surprised to see a crowd when he just happened to face that direction. They were good, just slightly unlucky in the line-up draw.  The singer had a killer scream and the songs Disengage and Stranger were really good.

Hot Lies pulled the crowd back around and started to build the momentum again. Suspended Smiles and Sweetest Revenge were crowd pleasers and you felt the energy in the room go up ever so slightly as each of these songs progressed. Even the “slow song” One For The Memories kept the pace moving. They had an old-school drummer (as old school as you can be if you are barely 20 years old of course!) who brought some entertaining showmanship to his drumming and added to the performance immeasurably. It was great to see a drummer wield a stick like it was as big as a guitar. Thoroughly enjoyed their set.

I Killed The Prom Queen: Yippee! Love a good, satanic sounding singer and this band certainly have one. They were dark, heavy and the perfect lead up to Alexisonfire. Looking less frightening than 70% of the crowd, the illusion of being “Nice Boys” was obliterated the second they played a single note. Fury, relentless guitar, rhythm, movement and killer songs made Prom Queen really memorable. Screeching, guitars held high and a frenzied crowd packed to the rafters, it was really something. Swallowing Razorblades was an amazing song and the highlight for me.

By the time Alexisonfire hit the stage, we were almost six hours into the frenzy and the crowd were psyched. They launched into the first track off Watch Out, Accidents, their first full-length album and it was amazing. Control was my favourite song of the show and the crowd sang and screamed so much that I suspect a tongue ring or two was set reeling across the room as it tried to escape the noise being created by its owner! Polaroids and Polar Bears caused the boy I was standing next to to squeal like a girl which is always a good sign and White Devil, the bands song about their anti-cocaine stance was well received, even though I thought it was a bit lacklustre.

Side Walk When She Walks is almost ballad-like and kicked ass.  The scream vocalist George was amazing, and got right in and mucked it up with the crowd. He crowd surfed during Accidents and did a lap of the venue during Happiness by the Kilowatt which closed out the set. The melody vocalist Wade looked like he had killed The New Romantics and stolen their hair and it was perfect for the band! He was the perfect contrast to bassist Steele who in turn, looked like he had killed one of The Goodies and stole, well his everything – he swung his guitar, he grooved, he was suave, the only word for it.  

The encore featured The Kennedy Curse and Little Girls Pointing and Laughing and the crowd exploded and poured out of the Manning Bar hyped and exhausted at the same time. Ears bleeding and thirsty for their next beer.