Unkle @ The Bakery, Perth(11/05/11)

Sun 15th May, 2011 in Gig Reviews

Check out the pictures by camc here

Tantrums were the opening act and they impressed the crowd with their superb textural layerings. From fuzzy synth to clattery noises, frugul robot mic effects, and set off by some sultry dronesome vocals by Jade McInally, the audience were transported to somewhere slightly ethereal. The subtlety of it all was the key to their charm; the audience could take what they please with melodies and different sounds weaving in and out. The drumming was stand-out amazing – the crowd stood in awe of the skills of James Campbell. Whilst each song in itself was a living object, moving from simplicity to chaos and back again, each song stood out in a distinct way. This Melbourne band has got some true skills and the audience was suitably impressed, as many had moved toward the stage in the time of their performance, soaking in the beauty of it all.

And then came Unkle.The crowd had been lulled into a false sense of security by the subtlety and beauty from the opening act, as the first couple of songs by Unkle were enough to send people fleeing from the speakers. What at first felt like an aural assault, the sound guys had turned the volume knob to “permanent hearing loss” and then some. No-one likes a gig to be a painful experience but there were many sensible folk administering their ear-plugs or moving further back from the stage and others who must have already reached a level of hearing loss meaning they could withstand the pressure. It was a shame as it’s hardly a criticism of the band that the music was too “loud” but it was certainly an element to make the event slightly less tolerable.

There was little crowd interaction, apart from James Lavelle demanding that the masses clap along at many points throughout the set, the requisite thanks to Perth and oddly enough, Lavelle throwing a carrot to the fans. It was a varied crowd composition, different cultural backgrounds, different ages, and different styles.

They entered the stage to the Willy Wonka theme song before the synth built to launch into The Storm. Then came the booming that was Burn My Shadow like a dark cloud passing by every time the main chorus was sung – but the intensity was slightly stripped by drunk man stage right shouting his lungs off joyfully. The similarities of Tantrum and Unkle seemed to be with the variety of soundscapes presented. Unkle presented caveman like grunting, echoic mics and didgeroo sounding beats to name a few intricacies scattered throughout the prevailing violent rock sound.

Singers were interchanged throughout the evening, which provided another element of variety and interest – at times the vocal was played without being sung live; other times Lavelle was singing. Joel Cadbury, former South frontman joined the band and his vocal provided a different tonal element, a soothing pan-pipe type sound to ease the intensity. Gavin Clark, former Clayhill vocalist joined the band onstage sporadically, coming off and on when required. Offstage times were spent on one of the Bakery’s many comfortable couches and he could be seen stalking through the red curtained maze walkway on his returns.

Other songs were Ablivion, highlight Eye for an Eye, before the encore of Heaven, Lonely Soul, and finally The Time Has Come. Unkle are an interesting band, a band to be concentrated on, and some effort is required to appreciate them. The sound level was one unfortunate barrier to this on Wednesday night. Nevertheless, there were many interesting elements going on, including the visuals displayed behind the band, and it seemed that many in the audience were willing to take it all in.