An Horse, The Gold Coats @ TheZoo, Brisbane (02/06/2011)

Tue 7th Jun, 2011 in Gig Reviews

An Horse are a two piece, like The White Stripes, but that is where the similarities between the two bands end, aside from the fact they both rock. From their records you can hear that An Horse has a bit of an edge to them when it’s required, but by and large their brand of rock is more pop than AC/DC. At The Zoo they fired up the electric guitar and kicked the drums into life with effortless energy and self-assured showmanship.

The more dedicated fans gathered in the front row right after the doors open, already eager to see An Horse gallop onstage. The Gold Coats were first on and the audience, while unmoving and subdued, really took to them and applauded enthusiastically after each song. The Gold Coats had a great country-pop sound, and the two female vocalists showed off some lovely harmonies. The guitarist was always eager to solo during the vocals breaks, which quickly grew tiresome and the band needs tightening up before they can match An Horse.

Speaking of which, an hour after The Gold Coats packed up An Horse launched straight into Trains and Tracks and Know This, We’ve Noticed off their new album Walls. An Horse sound fuller and heavier than they do on their albums, while also maintaining their catchy melodies and harmonies. They effortlessly fill up the area with a brilliant display of rhythmic mastery and fun rock noise.

Kate Cooper and Damon Cox happily thanked everyone for coming, and asked, “Is everyone alright? My Mum said I should check, but if you’re not, there’s not much I can do!” The band then goes back to their first album for Camp Out, which gets a few punters out in the audience bobbing their heads and swaying from side to side. Cox showed some serious rhythm chops on Scared As Fuck and Little Lungs had a nice soft opening before exploding into a theatrical flourish. The Mum jokes continue with Cooper announcing, “We joke that people who yell out ‘we love you’ are our Mum…but we can’t do that tonight cause our Mum’s are actually here.”

The song Walls switched briefly to an acoustic guitar which was a welcome change of pace, and gave the audience a greater appreciation of Cooper’s singing ability (as well as a brilliantly realised vocal harmony). Company brings back the spotlight on Cox again, when the vocal intro ends and the drums barrel down on the unsuspecting audience.

Dressed Sharply rocked the drum kit, and the band continued to remain faithful to their studio material. The band announced their final song, Swallow The Sea, and it all seemed to be over so fast. The encore, Airport Death was sinfully short but provided a sweet finish to the evening.