Fright Night @ Hyde Park Hotel(13/07/2007)

Wed 18th Jul, 2007 in Gig Reviews

- œFright Night’ on Black Friday at the Hydey was a cause for celebration thanks to the recent management decision to continue its support for local live music. Eight diverse local bands were scheduled to play on two stages in the front bar. But it was bad luck from the beginning as technical difficulties prevented The Enthroned Master from playing his set, especially composed for the night. As disappointed as he must have been, he stayed to support the rest of the bands on the bill, and graciously helped them to get their equipment working, since the Hydey staff seemed to care less.

Chris Cobilis from the long lived The Tigers played a solo set at the top stage which, despite my sobriety, I can’t remember at all.

In the pool room, played new band; Wales. Their influences are evident, but they are much nicer to look at than The Cure. Vocalist Angela Flood gave an impassioned performance, accentuating her vocals with the sultry-microphone-stand-seduction move. Her frequent eye contact with audience members seemed to frighten them back from the stage, conveniently giving those of us further back a better view. Drummer Patrick O’Brien snapped a stick early in the set, giving himself a nasty cut which bled convincingly as he suffered for his art. Just as the audience was figuring out who Wales reminded them of, they played a great rendition of Killing an Arab, a perfect opportunity for bassist Rhiannon Pilkington to show off her talents. Watch for more from this band in the next few months.

Pretentious indie-wanker College-rock band The Leap Year were up at the top stage, but fighting to the front was unnecessary, since they sounded better from the toilets. Blame would ordinarily go to the sound mixer for the painfully high treble which made it impossible to stand anywhere near the band, except that he did an excellent job with the other bands. When playing a venue like the Hydey, bands leave your amps alone, and let your sound guy fix your levels, because he can hear what you sound like to the audience. He can’t help what you say into the microphone however.

Hardcore punk-metal group Extortion was next, down in the pool room where the audience played guess-the-lyrics and wondered how often the vocalist had tangled himself up in the cables with his distinctive, enthusiastic, seizured dancing. Clearly it was going to be an interesting set since the sound-check consisted of turning on the mic. and saying “Hey… Yup, seems ok” They played what seemed like a tight set, and although the music wasn’t terribly complex, it was very fast, and very short. They knew what they were doing. If Extortion were trying to replicate the sound a record makes when you spin it backwards on a turntable with a finger, then they are possible the worlds most talented musicians. I suppose they were good, some of the audience thought so, anyway.

Day of the Dead played the soundtrack to a psychedelic western directed by Tarantino, at least that’s what it sounded like to me. No vocals, because apparently they can’t sing, the three piece had excellent command of their instruments, and by the second song, the audience as well. Ben Frichot on guitar and Brendan Giambazi on double bass captured the audience and held their attention throughout the full set, jumping up on the amps to change the scene, if they looked like losing anyone. They probably gained some new fans, and would have sold some cds, had they thought to bring any.

There should be some good photos around of this gig, since one photographer, absent of any kind of respect for audience or performers, wandered brassily around on stage, sticking his camera in the musicians’ faces, pushing through the audience, and happily blocking their view for as long as it took to get his shot. I guess what he stopped us from seeing live we will be able to recapture when we see his snaps. Perhaps bands should just play gigs for him, and fans can experience the awesome live sound of photography.

Second to last on the bill were The Wednesday Society; four undead butchers with pink bloodstains on their shirts. The set was entertaining and their musical skill and originality evident. Their stage antics and inter-band rapport drew the audience in, but The Wednesday Society was ultimately let down by being mixed for a much larger venue.

Finally, it was time for Schvendes to play, but as the crowd pressed closer, the room began to fill with a strange smell, which was explained by a nervous and polite Hydey official, who took the mic. after the first song, to inform us that the kitchen was on fire, and to please be ready in case we had to evacuate. Not to be deterred, Schvendes played on as the room filled with smoke, until, partway into Sleeping Dogs, the official returned, standing obtrusively next to vocalist/bassist, Rachel Dease trying to give the order to evacuate but not wanting to interrupt her song. She sang on until the sound was cut.

The irony was not lost on anyone, as the Hydey disgorged its contents into the street and musicians and fans, instruments, beers and bar staff milled around wondering what to do now, inventing conspiracy theories about major corporations and their disdain for live music, until being moved along by fire crews and management.