Make-Overs, The Pits, Shadowclub and The Great Apes getting all Jolly in Plumstead
- Details
- Published on Thursday, 05 January 2012 17:10
- Written by Rhynhardt Krynauw
The Jolly Roger, 29 December 2011.
Plumstead is far from everywhere. This is a fact that cannot be disputed. I drove from Durbanville for this gig. I considered staying over halfway and continuing my journey in the morning. It was, however, worth the tank of petrol
As the four people who have read my previous reviews may know (thanks, Mom), I have a serious thing for the two-piece noise-machine that is the Make-Overs. I like to think that I can write objective reviews and so retain my journalistic integrity, so I will offer unbiased critique.
They are awesome. Really. They screeched and hammered and ground through their set, creating the kind of bulldozer of sound that they are expected to deliver. They also taught the audience a valuable lesson, one that I myself learned through personal experience: if your amp isn't working properly, kick it. Then kick it again. Then hit the head and mutter something about the goddamned valves. One more kick, and you're good to go. According to them, they'll be back in CT in April. I'll keep you posted.
Now, you might say that I – like most men who like rock music – just have a major jones for hot women playing bass. Be that as it may, band number two deserve attention for a great deal more. The Pits, like Make-Overs, ripped through their set. They play fast, dirty rockabilly blues. The kind of stuff Brian Setzer would play if he weren’t so showy-offy with his guitars. I had seen them once before, at Obs Cafe with Peachy Keen and The Great Apes, a few months ago. Like Peachy Keen, they are fantastic in a small venue. They engage the crowd and play foot-stomping, jump-around guitar things. Looking forward to see what they can do at a bigger venue. These three should be big.
I had never seen Shadowclub before this gig. Wasn't really sure what to expect, but I got more than that. Not that that sentence makes even a modicum of sense. They were good. Rather good, in fact. Like the two bands preceding them, they played a very energetic, blues-rocky set. They play like a band that has been together for a long time. Their set was impeccably tight, and impressively vigorous. I reckon that what sets them apart from many bands is the clarity of vocalist/guitarist Jacques's voice. His was not as raunchy and in-your-face as the other vocalists' voices, and I attempted to discuss this with him. Sadly, his energy is so very boundless – conspicuously so, in fact – that pinning him down for more than a few seconds was tricky.
Watching and interacting with The Great Apes, I felt like David Attenborough. Let's see how far this daft metaphor goes. There are these five hairy creatures bounding around the stage. Two are relatively quiet. One bellows with abandon. One hits things really, really hard with sticks. And one, well, plays bass.
Right. That was absolutely fucking terrible. Wow. No more metaphors.
If you've not seen them before, be on the lookout. Their music is slower than the other bands on this list, but as heavy and bluesy. Frontman Yusuf delivers a powerful, if unconventional, vocal performance. The four guys around him make a shitload of noise. I have never seen anyone punish a drumkit that much. Having a drink at a wee house party several hours and many beers after the gig, I ask drummer Jeakan: “Why do you play so hard? Did your drums make you angry?” The chorus of “Who the fuck let a journalist in?” made me think that the party may be drawing to a close. My friend and I stumbled out of a house in Woodstock into what looked far too much like sunrise. The rest of that day was unremittingly shit, but the Jolly Roger experience – overnight bag and all – rocked.