Friday 14 January 2011

Gallium Jack & Pip Boy 3000 At Sleeping Panda Promotions

Brighton Hobgoblin
Thursday 13th Jan

Tonight see's the 3rd Sleeping Panda promotions event upstairs at the Hobgoblin, with two bands opening the event that I had yet to hear around Brighton. Headlining the event were Grunge encrusted Sweet Ether with support from melodic Alt rockers, Sice




Gallium are a 3 piece born and bred in Brighton and are out promoting their new E.P. “Post Autumn” that will be reviewed later this month.

Musically they fit into the “Alternative Rock” genre next to the likes of Biffy Clyro, but also borrowing elements from Grunge bands such as The Pixies with soft verses and distorted chorus, that makes for an enjoyable listening experience.

Their set begins with an heir awkwardness as would be expected performing to a room of less than 10 people, but they quickly take control through the raw quality of their music. Their front man has a great voice delivering a very believable and emotional performance that most front men forget. But musically they are very interesting. Tasteful use of effects and technicality create atmospherics and tension without overshadowing the band.

They played a short but sweet set leaving behind some catchy vocal hooks in my head that can only been accomplished by a mature appreciation for songwriting. They currently have no upcoming gigs, but watch their Myspace for in a town where talentless wank indie shit is so rife, it is refreshing to hear something with feeling.



Pip boy open their set to a backing track, which I normally find a bit overkill to small room of 25 people but actually makes for a strong opener that gets everyone interested. They then burst into a Kyuss like stoneyer than stone grove that get's my head rocking. However it is very hard for any band to sound like Kyuss without, well, sounding like Kyuss!

The initial excitement wears off very quickly, though as the set begins to sound bland and somehow lacking in energy. The drummer is very polite perhaps being the root of this energy drought and it leaves a blurring in definition between stoner rock and lethargic rock.

With track names such as “Big bear vs the ketamine monster” little is left to the imagination and I just feel that a band of this calibre should grab me by the balls instead of being balls.
For me Pip boy have some good ideas, a great vocalist and some disgusting tempo changes that always get me excited but I don't feel that they are really serious about this.


Their set initially promised so much but as the set went on it was more and more evident that something is missing and it left me having to put on “Sky Valley” the moment I got home. 

Underground

2 comments:

  1. Gallium Jack WILL be coming back to AudioBeach Studios in Brighton (audiobeachstudios.com) for full production on their single, "Save Us, Radar!" with Forbes Coleman & Jordan Childs.

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  2. Were we at the same Pip Boy gig? Didn't you notice the lessening of space around you when they took to the stage? By far the most promising act of the night. Disgusting tempo changes are the least of it. Where are your comments about the treacle thick bass lines and the thundering death rattle encompassed within the guitar? Ones to watch.

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