Dipsmith, The Delicate Children, Summerfall. Review 1 of 2
Friday 14th May 2004. The Thirst Club Esquires Bedford.
Some pictures of the night can be seen on www.sampleoflife.co.uk/ DIPSMITH
Having never heard of this band before, I had no idea what to expect, although I was in fact quite impressed. They are a covers band, and played a set including a variety of musical genres and styles, including songs by Alice Cooper, The Offspring, Black Sabbath, Blink 182, Chuck Berry and RHCP.
I thought the singer was of a high standard, and had a good voice, which adapted itself to all the music he sung. The drummer was also particularly impressive, with some nice adaptations to the originals. Unfortunately the guitarist wasn’t up to quite the same standard, as he struggled with some of the solos, yet a good sound was achieved during the riffs.
Overall, a good start to the evening, and they gained a good crowd response due to their ability to gain a unique sound while still capturing the style of the originals.
DELICATE CHILDREN
I’ve seen this band a few times now, and I still can’t quite get into it. They approach their music with a lot of energy and enthusiasm, and play sort of heavy nu-metal.
There was a good degree of variety in the material, with some quite melodic sections combined with some heavy riffs, and I was impressed again by the singer who can switch instantly between gentle singing and screaming. Unfortunately, they don’t quite suit my musical tastes, and I got the feeling this was the case with most of the crowd tonight.
Overall, a fairly decent set – difficult to fault anything in particular, but simply not quite my thing. <
SUMMERFALL
This was their third gig in a week, and from a band who are rapidly gaining a great reputation in the local area. They rarely fail to provide, and tonight was no exception. They fit into a unique genre, mixing attributes from metal, emo, funk and rap, and the crowd were highly appreciative of their talent. Their set included the much-loved ‘Funky Chicken (2)’, and a cover of ‘Forgot about Dre’.
It would be impossible to single anyone out for credit, although what does impress me is how all four members provide vocals in the music. A good sound was achieved by the band, who played with tight structure and deserved confidence.
Look out for a c.d., which should be out some time in early summer!
Review by Tom Outen www.bedfordmetal.tk<
Dipsmith, Delicate Children, Summerfall. Review 2 of 2
www.sampleoflife.co.uk/
DIPSMITH are nothing special, and they know it. Happy to be getting any type of reaction for the moment, this previously unheard four piece bashed out a passable succession of rock standards before being shuffled off the stage when their time was up. Too loud to ignore and have a pint, too generic to hold your attention for five minutes, Dipsmith need to write some of their own stuff, or fuck off downstairs and play Danny's.
People turned up in their droves tonight to see DELICATE CHILDREN, but I think I missed them. Try as I might, all I could see was a lanky tosser with "WAR" tattooed on his chest, and a lot of idiots trying to figure out whether they should be swaying moodily, or headbanging like woodpeckers on horse tranquillisers. The music is awful, of this I can assure you. Delicate Children have taken a few basic principles of song writing, and done them to death. Almost every song consists of a quiet, clean verse, and a fuzzy drop-tuned riff, and although many people would describe this with "no-fuckin-about-mate" or "straight-to-the-point", I would instead select "boring-as-shit". Sadly, this is not uncommon in music, and many a successful band is doing it and getting recognition for it as I write. So why are Delicate Children still so appalling in my opinion? Because, not only do they play music that is predictable and clichéd, they play it badly. So it's official, the world (or at least Bedford) has gone mad. When a band like Delicate Children can get anywhere near the stage at Esquires, its time to call the brain-doctors....and tell them to bring the cattle prods.
SUMMERFALL were next up, and started their set unusually with a cover of Franz-Ferdinand's "Take Me Home". Although it allowed the band to enter the stage one-by-one, and was a played to a degree of competency, it provoked little more than weak smiles and an atmosphere of uneasiness at Esquires, even from a crowd full of their friends and family. Image is something obviously considered when it comes to Summerfall, but their carefully arranged hair and smart clothes are always backed up by a sound that is intricate almost to the point of excess. Tonight their choice of covers was a sign of immaturity, and only really came off thanks to some of their own, well-rehearsed material, and the increasingly amiable and forgiving vibe, which sprung up soon afterwards. The rest of their set was met with much movement and energy, and they recovered quickly from this unexpected start. There as usual were the tight vocal harmonies, bouncy riffs, and excessive guitar solos that make up the Summerfall sound, but all set to a background of nervous hesitance. Despite this, the songs were delivered with accuracy and obvious enjoyment from the crowd AND band, and the night finished positively. Summerfall love music, know how to play their instruments, and have the cherub-faced innocence to fuck about and have a laugh every now and then. Nice lads.
review-Joey (joecritch@aol.com) for bedfordmetal.tk
