12th Feb 2003

Note to self: Fewer penis' = fewer people.

Southern Records Hostile Ambient Takeover #2

At the last HATO I got all girlie about being one of the few girls in the crowd. To my surprise and pleasure there seem on first appearances to be more girls at this show. Whether this means there are more girls who like Wheels/Jarcrew/pAper chAse enough to see them than those who like Cat On Form/ Part Chimp enough to see, I'm not sure... and conclusions are stinted when I realise that actually, this show is a lot emptier than the last one. A quick headcount and I note that there are about the same number of girls at the show as there were at the last one.. there are just fewer guys, and as such, fewer people in total. But it evens up the balance and, in a roundabout way, means that maybe girls are more committed when it comes to seeing a band they like? Or maybe it doesn't... Hmm. One of these days I'll study something important and learn some posh words and write a competent piece of work about what this girl:boy ratio at rock shows is all about. I'll have to have made some kind of headway with working out an answer by that point, sure, but hey... I'll let you know when it happens.

Once again I had missed the first band by the time I got to the show, but I did have a great conversation with a pebble-glassed pensioner about the threat of war and his "arabs that live next door" that "aint no terrorisers" on the (late) train to the gig. Makes up for everything that went before in the day, and indeed, any crap that came after. My faith in the public Joe (or 'Derek') was solid as a rock.

So I guess I was already in the mood for some good time Rock and Roll... which was mighty handy, because if nothing else, Jarcrew are into having a good time.

On first appearances, they look a little 'thrown together at the last minute'. A little young. A little self-conscious. I don't know anything about the band, so I assume that actually, they are all of these things. (Later investigation on their website reveals that they have been together for some time - long enough at least to get two reviews in Kerrang! and an NME review, along with a nomination for Best Newcomers in the Welsh Music Awards and are infact all around the same age as me) Which is fine, because I have absolutely nothing against a bit of young talent throwing themselves about in a mish-mash ode to their favourite bands so long as its with sufficient love and energy that it bleeds into the audience enough to appreciate it.

And we're appreciating it.

From the Dismemberment Plan meets Les Savy Fav style stompers (complete with ADD synths and jiggly bass lines), to the Rolling Stones meets Wolf Colonel bluesy-garage-noise numbers and the more ambient Warp-y mini-disk soundscapes, we are appreciating it.
Appreciating it enough in fact, for them to sell out of CDs... which I must admit, surprised me a little. While their individual tunes seem well crafted, well played and interesting enough (the odd sample here, some forsetto whelps and some godawful harmonies where you wouldn't expect them), their overall sound seems a little undecided.

To make up for this, a lot of focus goes on showmanship - the main vocalist, a Mick Jagger-hand-clapper-booty-wiggler type who threw in some Tim Les Savy Fav crowd invasion and lobbed playing cards at the audience; the bassist, a Lóreal peach faced, hair flicker/metal type thrashing hair this way and that; a small and insane drummer (who reminded me of both Pippen from the Lord of The Rings films and RHCP's Flea) who favoured tipping his drum kit over and playing the bass drum with sticks in a squatting position... etc etc. And while this held the audience's attention for the 45 mins or so that they seemed to be on, it aint going to carry over to record.

Back in Ammanford, Wales they may be the avant-alternative needed to bash Lostprofits off the top of the Welsh Alt-Rock Charts, in the wider world of Spiky Art Rock, they aren't the most arty, most spiky or most rock.
However, all that said, Jarcrew positively OOOZE with the energy and passion of a young band who love what they're doing, and as long as they keep that fresh, I have no doubt they will settle into a sound (however eclectic) of their own.

I'm debating going over and buying their CD, (Breakdance Euphoria Kids, Complete Control Music) to see if I'm right about them not working on record, whilst simultaneously having a conversation about stuff I wont bore you with now, and buying a drink when I realise to my horror that as a usual driver and as such, non-alcohol-drinker, the price of a beer vs. volume of liquid is ridiculous.
I debate upping sticks and moving to Wales where home brew is (apparently) very cheap and very popular, remember I'm not much of a drinker anyway and resolve all the issues battling for space in my brain (which I picture rather like watching your hard-disk defragment) in time to see the pAper chAse take the stage.

Mid first line of the first track, the mic dips to inaudible levels and while we can see the singer screaming his heart out and ruffling his hair, and pointing with eyes glaring, at the audience... we cant hear him. The crowd stand, bopping, not throbbing or dancing, just bopping - eyes fixed, trying to work out what exactly is going on... feeling slightly awkward, motioning their inclusion in this disaster to the band with their helpless faces and half-hearted but encouraging smiles.

And what an irony, for a band who released an EP (Cntrl-Alt-Delete-U on Divot.) which was billed as "a commentary on the average human's reliance on technology and the division it has drawn between nature and such...". Witness the divide! On one side, a band beating out their frustrations in a public arena, on the other, a befuddled group of people trying to make ends of the situation and in the middle - TECHNOLOGY letting us down.
In hindsight, I'm sure the band will make this connection, and appreciate it. In the present, I can imagine they were fairly disheartened and frustrated.

But good for us of course, because by the time the mic came back, The pAper chAse were just about ready to explode. Watch! As the beardy bassist swoons with his tool as if digging graves... Marvel! At the little angular man with the stark emotion and strained vocals... Ignore! The keyboard guy who didn't really do anything interesting so I wont talk about him (or the drummer for that matter, notable for his tattoos and time-keeping only). Wonder! about how they manage to be so darn EMO and not kill me standing.

I've had my fill of EMO. I'll be honest... and while we could all debate for a whole long while about what it is, let's not. At their best, pAper chAse remind me of Gang of Four, or maybe a little bit PIL-esque. At their worst they remind me of later day Dismemberment Plan, after they lost their ZING and got all ... "This is a song about being in love, and falling out of love, and loving someone else who doesn't love you back" and stuff.
For me, they are a band who work better on record.

Which is a good place to end tonight - I saw two bands, one makes great records, one makes a great show, but neither did both for me.

Southern Records
Part Chimp
Cat on Form
pAper chAse
Jarcrew

article by Xoë Kingsley
pAper chAse photo from Lazy-i