Gig Review
Whether they’re just unaccustomed to playing such small venues anymore, or there’s some other unknown reason at work, The Rumble Strips don’t ever appear completely relaxed at tonight’s Sony Ericsson Presents Q The Music Club gig. Instead, they're a bundle of taut nerves and bottled agitation – singer Charlie Waller hardly addresses the crowd at the Hard Rock Cafe at all, instead fixating on those close to and in front of him with a disturbing wide-eyed stare that would leave Mike Tyson cowering.
The band begin with No Soul, a lone trumpet gently announcing the start of the song before it kicks in with a fervour and intensity that is to remain constant for the entire time they’re onstage. Yet while their appearance is one of disaffection, their songs are jaunty and uplifting, boppy, energetic numbers dashed with flickers of despair and disillusion – it’s a combination that works well, the lyrics offsetting and subverting the happy-go-lucky nature of the tunes.
Time, in particular, stands out for its sense of wistful longing, Waller’s pained vocals soaring high both through the quiet breakdown and then the build-up that follows. While the band may not address their audience, they’re clearly engaged with them, and the crowd feed off their visible edginess. Although they do warm up, they never seem entirely at ease, yet this only makes their set more compelling.
Motorcycle is tremulous and trembling and performed with a real sense of urgency as trumpet, saxophone, keys and guitars collide in an exuberant and euphoric crescendo of noise. There’s a brief, awkward pause a couple of songs later, as if the band aren’t quite sure what they’re about to do, before a cry of “New one!” – practically the only two words spoken by the band all night – announces the first of two songs from their forthcoming, Mark Ronson-produced second album.
More off-key and disjointed than the songs from their first album, Dem Girls sounds very much like an improvised, discordant jam, albeit one that works particularly well, while, Daniel, another new one, continues in the same vein, its disjointed piano intro as unsettling as Waller’s glare, which he maintains from start to end. And it’s with a look of disgruntled stoicism on their faces that the band, sweaty and exhausted, leave the stage after a rendition of fan favourite Girls And Boys In Love.
They may not have been ones for talking much, but they didn’t really need to. The songs and their performance said more than enough.
Mischa Pearlman
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Setlist:
No Soul
London
Backbone
Time
Only Person
Douglas
Motorcycle
Sweet Heart
Happy Hell
Hands
Dem Girls
Daniel
Girls And Boys In Love
Fan Review
Our lucky competition winner won a Sony Ericsson phone, opportunity to review the gig and interview the band (shot on a Sony Ericsson C905 Cyber-shot™ phone). See below to see what they thought:
"Being a Rumble Strips virgin, it was an interesting experience, but one I enjoyed. There is no doubt that the band are good at what they do, which inspires confidence. The set started with the sound of Dexy's Midnight runners meeting Haircut 100; hair and sax and trumpet and guitar, all having a bit of a fight. Good as it was, the melody was getting a little lost, but plenty of attitude, loads of confidence and great, piercing eyes from the lead, Charles.
"The first half of the set continued in this vain with some real Arcadian Fire Moments, but the hooks and melody became too blurred to decipher. Maybe that's the point: a noughties take on the eighties. It was a very very near miss for me, though I do not doubt that they will get there. All the ingredients are there but the art of "the pause" was
missing. I felt the need for a Stray Cat strut to polish them. Then the second half started with a different take, a song about a bicycle, which was great. At this point my friend next to me nodded a sign of approval, which continued for the next three tracks including Daniel. The eighties feel was still there but the noughties took over. I don't want them to calm down, I just want to hear their music more clearly. All in all, it was a good show - and I think they will get even better."
Stephan Dowers
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