As important as the onset of an Alex and the Ramps residency is, it’s
fair to say that the venue is as much on show as the band tonight. This is the
first gig to be held here since the pub/restaurant/venue opened quietly in late
August, and given the layout, quality of the PA and people behind it, it’s safe
to say there’ll be plenty more.
First up though, is the showcasing of the newest addition to the
headline act, drummer Pascal Barbare. Recent replacement of longtime Ramp Jon
Thjia, he pedals his own brand of indie rock weirdness with his band Pascal Barbare & Teeth. Which is
ironic, as teeth is what this music could use. Loose harmonies coast on
swelling and lulling anthemic indie rock, laden with ‘la la la’s and noodling
Gretsches. It’s innocuous enough, but with the talent present, and several moments where the careful use of dynamics and control of textures come
together, it seems better will come. Judging by the quality of Barbare’s
solo work, the potential is definitely there.
Witch Hats too, play a relatively subdued set,
possibly due to their recent single launch, described as ‘loud as fuck’ by the
band. Playing most of new album Pleasure
Syndrome, the songs are oddly mid-tempo and lyrics almost discernible. Now
into their sixth year, a cynical intelligence seems to have subsumed the biting
humour and bludgeoning danger that came with a Witch Hats show; it's as if
they've thought before acting for the first time. Musically tighter than ever
before, the band are still able to shift the tone of a song in a moment, that
they choose not to is slightly frustrating and probably makes more sense on
record. Ash Buscombe’s bass sound has an intensity that even Albini would leave
alone, and it punches fiercely against the dour garage rock. The lack of
stinging malevolence, once bottled, set alight and flung into the face of a
Pony 2AM crowd, is a difficult thing to replace. Songs like Sessa still channel it, but it seems
something else is on their minds now. Perhaps the venue is too shiny and a
messy warehouse party would bring it back.
For anyone who hasn’t seen Aleks
and the Ramps for more than a few months, matching expectations with their
new lineup is initially disorienting. With 2/5ths of the band replaced since
their phenomenal Midnight Believer album,
and the role of each member so vital to the output, it’s a tough move they’ve
had to make. Fortunately, the quality of songwriting is maintaining its upward
trajectory and it is this, as well as Aleks' and Extreme Wheeze’s guitar
theatrics, Flying Diamonds’ banter, new member Whistling Nancy’s random
anecdotes and the sheer talent present that wins over the sizeable and
curiously heavily-bearded crowd.
“So, what do you think of the Phoenix?” asks Aleks, three songs in. “It's
a pretty nice place, I got some yummy food, it's got a good vibe,” he says to
murmurs of concurrence. Their set is loaded with new material and songs In the Snow for the Time Being, Pray Tell and Crocodile all manage the astonishing job of not being flattened by
the brilliance of earlier singles Antique
Limb and Bummer (‘a song about
doing a brief stint in jail for ordering a Taser online and not realizing you
couldn’t bring them into the country’). The audience, a mixture of the curious,
the local and friends, respond warmly and react with glee to the dual
guitar-behind-the-head solos and the band’s propensity for ending a song
suddenly. It’s rare to see a band manage such a shift in members and still deliver
such a cohesive and exciting set. Tonight’s show, along with the forthcoming
album provides another reason to get happy about the forthcoming summer.
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