August 9, 2006
The Sons
To open up Heat 6 we have The Sons from Derby, a band I had heard a bit about and all positive. They are clearly influence by the current crop of what I would class as garage rock band and indie bands who rule the chart scene with not a too dissimilar feel than Razorlight or Franz Ferdinand but with a slightly quirky punky edge too, it has elements of early Stokes and also more punky stuff too. The vocals have that lazy feel and the riffs are punky and catchy. The bass pushes much of the sound forward and with a expressive drummer, they are very good at this style. At times it isn't always the tightest but the songs are catchy and the vocal hooks especially are easy to get into, with interesting patterns and some nice harmonies. They had alright stage presence but as the set progressed the drummer started losing his energy and they started making mistakes and going out of time. Some of the songs also started sounding a bit too similar. The Sons were a solid opening to the evening and if you like this style you would probably enjoy their catchy set but I just felt I have heard this sound to often lately and there wasn't anything that set this band apart from so many other Arctic Monkeys wannabes. Their myspace is /thesonsarealreet and they are alreet, but not much more.
http://www.myspace.com/thesonsarealreet
Vim and Vigor
Second tonight are Vim and Vigor who had a very interesting style mixing glam punk and emo with a weird electronic edge. This band were full f interesting ideas and also had decent stage presences however they weren't tight. The guitar riffs were strong and the vocalist tried some original and clever patterns. They started off a bit all over the place but as the set progressed I started to enjoy them more and more. With the softer keyboard moments it had some good dynamic and with the rocky, punky heavy side it had catchy and original moments too. Sadly this band were trying to do something that was to difficult I felt and they didn't look quite right on stage with only the frontman looking and acting the part. However if they keep working at this sound and get tighter this band had potential I felt. Image Lost Prophets playing Super-hero theme tunes with Gary Numan or Mike Oldfield on keyboard!!
http://www.myspace.com/vimandvigor
Speshul
Next on are Speshul with big pianos and moving bass lines it started fairly well with the vocalist reminding me slightly of Tom Petty. The drumming however was very basic and unimaginative and as the set progressed the music seemed to all follow suit with predictable vocal patterns and simple structures the only variety and dynamic was coming from that piano. It had an Elvis Costello feel at times too but with no witty lyrics and little stage presence Speshul had nothing very special about them sadly. The songs were fairly upbeat and the style seemed t be radio friendly and had catchy moments but it all sounded the same and lacked energy, emotion and originality. They seemed to start most songs well but the songs lacked variety and got quite messy later so sadly this wasn't a set to remember.
Aphemia
To finish the night we have a band who entered last year's competition, Aphemia. Aphemia mix huge catchy metal riffs with an industrial edge and are a band full of power. Last year however they lacked presence and weren't always tight hence they didn't qualify from their heat. Tonight their set starts with an awesome burst of power and the drummer goes nuts as the huge, epic keyboards come in and the beefy and catchy guitar riffs and vocal patterns break through. The drummer and bassist are really tight and provide the backbone to the band and with the keyboard adding a mass of depth and atmosphere they really build a sound scape of noise. The guitar riffs are very catchy and have almost a nu-metal feel with Papa Roach mixed in with a heavier industrial (Pitchshifter?) edge. The vocals are still not always strong enough even though the patterns are catchy and interesting and each song has a powerful and diverse edge. The stage presence could also be improved on with a lack of stage movement but the music does the talking and this band are tight and powerful with catchy and dynamic songs and a beef and kick that ends the evening on a high.
http://www.myspace.com/myaphemia
The WInners of Heat 6 were Aphemia.
Reviewed by: Gaz and Steph
