Marmozets, Newcastle Riverside 25/02/15

Marmozets

Newcastle Riverside 25/02/15

Does anyone read these blogs? Seriously, anyone? Not that I mind if anyone does or doesn't (and if you don't, you are rendering this introduction quite pointless by not reading it), it's just that what I'm about to write about Marmozets should come as no surprise to those of you who that saw me give them my vote as album of the year for their debut The Weird and Wonderful Marmozets. I was impressed enough by the record but seeing them in the flesh has affirmed one thought for me, and it's one that has lingered in my normally scattershot brain from leaving the venue to right this second: this band is the future.

Ok, I should warn you that like many of my reviews, this will contain some serious hyperbole but I happen to think it's justified after what I just witnessed. So... where to start... Yeah, that's right: the pub.

Meeting fellow amateur critic/comic book nerd/swearing enthusiast Nick in a local pub, we discussed tonight's headliners, to whom I had introduced Nick the day before and agreed that the record was cool but that the audience was going to be full of hipsters and children (we were nearly right). Having been to a woefully under-attended Funeral For A Friend show a month earlier, Nick knew the venue better than I did. I hadn't been near the place since I endured a truly dreadful night there under its previous incarnation, the annexe of Hell that was the nightclub Sea. Anyone who claims to have had fun in there at any point can stop reading now and kindly wash the lies from your mouth with some minging Tyne water. It was an irredeemable shithole of a nightclub but the new owners' decision to do almost nothing to the décor has lent it a certain rough and unpolished charm, the likes of which has not been seen since The Academy sucked the soul out of the local scene through a corporate straw and Newcastle University underwent a Star Trek-inspired plastic makeover. I liked it immediately.

Opening band Thought Forms were frankly baffling. A three piece with no bass player, their ponderous noise crescendos made me think of a strange metaphor. Anyone remember the Brass Eye episode about drugs? The one about the dangers of Cake, a made-up drug from Prague? Well one of the symptoms of cake use was that you experience time at a different pace to other people; one second feeling like a fortnight. That is the best description of Thought Forms I can think of. And I really tried.

Some hilariously expensive beer lubricated us enough to enjoy Steak Number Eight, a Belgian band about whom I know absolutely nothing but their nationality. In fact, I know very little about Belgium as a whole except Poirot, Tintin, Eden Hazard and Bruges. On the strength of this, however, I think I want to know more. By turns patient and prog-y and then dynamic and heavy, they reminded me of defunct bands-you've-never-heard-of Burst and Isis (the progressive rock band, not the lunatics or the Goddess) and impressed me enough to investigate further, which I will do when I've finished writing this.

Looking every bit like they just got kicked out of sixth form for breaking the uniform rules, Marmozets walk on and kick into 'Move, Shake, Hide'. The Bingley quintet, consisting of two sets of siblings, are young and full of energy, much of which is channelled through the elastic form of singer Becca Macintyre, who is a bundle of nervous energy and frantic dance moves throughout. She throws shapes like Phil 'The Power Taylor throws... well, you know where this is heading.

I need to get something out of the way before I go any further, just so I don't have to mention it again because it really isn't important. But I did notice this: Becca Macintyre is a girl. Girls get a shitty deal in the rock scene. Rock bands fronted by or even featuring a female member seem to be a novelty and attract such attention more for chromosome count rather than important ingredients like songs or talent. To marketing people and some fans alike, it becomes a gimmick. And in fairness, some of the singers themselves, or maybe just their record company image consultants, don't do themselves any favours. The overtly sexualised singers of Evanescense, Lacuna Coil, The Pretty Reckless garner attention more for little black dresses or stupid faux-Victorian baby doll costumes rather than they do for a great song or a unique voice. That really is sad: a woman in a rock band should not be a novelty, nor should she have to perform in a sexualised manner to share a stage with the hackneyed likes of fucking Black Veil Brides et al. So yeah, Becca is a girl but much more important than that statement is how utterly irrelevant it is, because she possesses an incredible voice, which requires no 'sexy' window dressing or image.

Now, I'm prone to getting emotional when certain singers do their thing really well; the first time I heard Eddie Vedder sing live I cried like a baby. Ditto (but to a letter extent) John Garcia of Kyuss and Colin Doran of Hundred Reasons. When I hear a certain type of voice, used with passion, used like the singer really means it, it goes right through me. This voice can safely be added to the list. Capable of a powerful vibrato or a gutteral roar, often during the same line, Macintyre absolutely nails what is heard on record but she does this while giving it her all. It quite honesty is hard to look away from the enthusiasm, the energy and conviction with which she performs.

But look away I did and credit must be given to the rest of the band. Full of ideas and innovation, I could namecheck the likes of Norma Jean, The Dillinger Escape Plan (in their softer moments...) or the angular riffs of Biffy Clyro's pre-Puzzle purple patch and not be far off what they do. This band has ideas to burn and it's refreshing to hear. The more straightforward 'Is It Horrible', probably their weakest song, recalls the likes of Arctic Monkeys (but without being dull as fuck) in terms of chord progression and vocal melody.

Single 'Captivate You' is a brilliantly positive anthemic tune, with which the audience gleefully participates. 'Particle' and 'Vibetech' showcase their heavier, more experimental side with riff after jarring riff and unpredictable time signatures, punctuated by glorious, soaring choruses. 'Hit The Wave' and 'Born Young and Free' are as inventive as they are uplifting. They play slower tune and album closer 'Back To You' and come agonisingly close to nailing its brilliant crescendo, stopped only by a rare bum note from Macintyre and the evening's only moment of muddy sound, which was largely excellent throughout.

If there's a criticism it's that their youth and naivete is telling at times, with the occasional clunky lyric and a few moments where some band members seem a little nervous. This, however, has the effect of making the band's stage banter endearingly grateful and wide-eyed. At one point, Becca Macintyre struggles to find the words and settles on: “This is just... stupid. We've never had this many people come to see us on a tour before.” Her guitarist brother is somewhat more blunt with “I just fucking... bloody love people. I bet there's not a single cunt in this room!” (cue everybody pointing at their best friend). It's nice to see a band genuinely appreciate the support they get and long may it continue.

They close with a brilliant 'Why Do You Hate Me', the band giving it their all and leaving the stage with promises of a swift return, a 2^nd album and some nice group hugging. Nick is suitably impressed and I'm suitably reassured of what I already suspected: these guys are the real deal.

We leave The Riverside to what is officially the best view one can have while leaving a venue; that of Newcastle's bridges lit for the night. One of our friends expresses a fear that a record company exec will soon get hold of them, homogenise their sound into something more chart-friendly and make Becca a make-up drenched focal point (the rest of the band reduced to the equivalent of those out-of-focus guys from Almost Famous). We all hope that doesn't happen. It would be a shame after what I saw tonight; this is a band doing their own thing, doing it with passion and enthusiasm and doing it really bloody well. I'm pretty sure that what I saw tonight was the future, and the future is weird and wonderful.