Rolo Tomassi and Throats @ The Portland Arms, Cambridge, 29th September

This was originally featured at the 405.

The setting for this show seems to resemble a living room with a stage, more than it does a proper show venue- something no doubt helped by the interesting choice of wallpaper, but in a way that’s nice. There’s only about 50 people here, with most of them under and around the age of 18, all packed together like sardines, especially so when the first support band has to find room for five, (yes 5) drum kits.

That’s half the fun of the opening band, Canaveral as well though. It sort of harks back to the post-punk era of the late 70s and early 80s in the UK, where bands were unafraid to just do what they wanted, and have a bit of fun, challenging the convention that a band should consist of a variation of singer, guitarist, bassist and drummer. ‘There are 5 of us who own a drum kit? There are 5 of us who can drum even a tiny amount? One of us plays saxophone? Let’s form a band!’ This kind of experimentation, and just doing stuff because you can, should always be welcomed. They create quite a racket too, and the experience of seeing five drummers pounding ferociously at the skins of their drums, improvising and making noise in any way they can, is quite something. Whilst it means the music is somewhat limited, to tribal drum sounding rhythms, the saxophone adds a proggy twist (although once they get going you struggle to hear anything but drums), and the use of plenty of feedback leaves a distinct essence of bands like Sonic Youth and maybe Flipper. The end product is not particularly amazing and the concept is perhaps greater than the overall outcome, but it certainly makes for an interesting 20 minutes and makes a nice change. It also looks like a lot of fun.

‘Give us 5 minutes, and then we will blow your mind’. Statements such as these regardless of context, ignoring the fact that they were clearly said in jest, should never really be made unless you can back them up. Throats, the Midlands based hardcore 5 piece, definitely can. Hitting the stage like a knife to the jugular, they produce a rhythmically pounding, relentless set, which sweeps you away with them. In place of any sense of melody or traditional song structure, Throats have chugging, heavy bass lines and powerful, absorbing riffs. I had seen these a while back, and thought they were fucking tight then, but they’re even more so now. The singer spends 3/4 of the set face down on the venue floor, screaming into the microphone, whilst the band behind him create a powerful, textured, fast and tumultuous tapestry of noise, hitting you like a bucket full of acid. Most of the songs played here can be found on their recent split EP, with Norwich based Maths, which is available on Rolo Tomassi’s former label, Holy Roar.

Throats set is a loud, intense and very impressive 25 minutes. Distinctly more aggressive and confrontational than headliners Rolo Tomassi’s music, the ferocity of this set means RT have their work cut out following them, although the same could be said for pretty much any band. Fucking ace!

Rolo Tomassi do more than just rise to the challenge laid out however, and prove why they are rightfully considered, by many, as the best young band in the UK today. Touring their new album ‘Hysterics’ which has been out just over a week now, via Hassle, they feature a mix of songs from this alongside tracks from their debut EP, which was released on Holy Roar, quite a while back. On the evidence of the show tonight, the new stuff features a bit more meandering, with slower build-ups. Eva actually sort of sings on a couple of songs and in  a way, it works as a welcome interlude between the hyperactive, screaming, frenetic sound, that makes Rolo Tomassi so exciting and further emphasising the heights of the fury. As usual, energy exudes from the stage, with the entire band (minus drummer) dancing and leaping around, reflecting perfectly the spazzy sound produced. Despite still seeming really nervous onstage before their set and in between songs, retaining a likeable sense of modesty, when in full flight Rolo Tomassi transform from a group of slightly geeky young kids, into a complete monster of noise, encompassing the entire room, with their brand of ‘not sounding quite like anything else around’ surrealism. It’s great to watch the passion they put into each performance, it gives everyone watching an adrenaline rush, and when the riffs kick in its hard not to get really excited. You leave the venue wanting to form your own band and smash things up. To put it simply, they’re really, really good, a glorious amalgamation of, what seems like, 100’s of noises all at once.

This set just serves to underline why there is and was such excitable hype for ‘Hysterics’ among those that love the band, showing that Rolo Tomassi have more than enough to back up the praise often lavished upon them. Oh, and they covered a Trencher song! This band have the potential to develop into something very special indeed, and on the evidence of this show, they are well on their way.

Canaveral- 6/10

Throats- 8.5/10

Rolo Tomassi- 8.5/10

Original Post- http://thefourohfive.com/?p=9