Caught in the Crossfire

Giant Drag
Camden-Electric Ballroom
1 November 2005

Electric Ballroom. The venue verdict-always rad, but if I see anyone wearing stripes for a while I’m gonna hurl! What is it with Camden and friggin stripes. TopShop Capitalism has spread into punk-rock! When I 1st arrived there was a 1 piece giving it all he had on stage…so I hit the bar. I still have no idea who he was or if he was actually supposed to be there?!

Opening for Nine Black Alps is Giant Drag. This was different…very different. In fact so refreshing, for a minute I thought they would completely steal the show. It’s an unassuming 2 piece with the drummer playing-*get this*-drums AND keyboards at the same fucking time!!! If you pay close enough attention you will notice it ain’t just any old melody he is conjuring up on the keyboard-the guy was coordinating the entire bass-line while simultaneously playing the drums. Neither drums or bass suffered the consequences either. The quirky singer seems cute-in a 17yr old innocent girl kinda way, but she has the sweetest, sexiest voice that just fills an entire room in a Hole-Mazzy Star-Juliette and the Licks kinda way. The contradiction of their low-profile image on stage vs. their lyrics was the highlight as they hit off with “You fuck like my Dad”. They pulled it off with humor, elegance and most importantly have been the most un-pretentious band I have seen in a long, long, very very long time. Ok, I’ll admit Annie (lead singer) is probably certifiable, but you cant put a price on humor. Its so annoying seeing a band that takes themselves too seriously. They even finished off with taking a photo of the crowd *how sweet*. With such a great sound from such a budding band it is no wonder they sold out of EVERY single demo CD. Its pretty new, so hopefully it will hit retail pretty damn soon, cause I’m dying for a copy!

Nine Black Alps are up next. The venue starts flooding. Not sure where the heck they came from but it filled up within minutes. The local Manchester group kicks off with some top hits from their new album. Everyone was going mad with teenage angst! It’s the kind of gig that makes you feel old if you are over 12! None-the-less they were so damn good I even forgot which song they played first, last, 7th-who cares, they completely rocked!!! Their sound filled the room with a clean Nirvana reminiscent sound. A lot of their songs sounded better live than off their CD’s.

It’s not a new or revolutionary sound, lets be honest, but they still pull of a commercial sound with their own personalized flair. It was a good mix of full-blown rock, acoustic, melodic and finally a mass explosion of sound leaving no songs left to play for an encore. The guitarist and bass-player were showing off by swapping roles, and proved they can pull off each song effortlessly no matter where they landed up in the order of things. While NBA pull of each subtle flavour, I get the feeling that they are still searching for a sound to grow into. Judging from their live performance, once they find their unique path their will be no stopping them! Clearly they are a versatile band that we can expect great things from in the future…but the fact that the gig sold out in a well sized venue is word enough!

Niki Kova’cs

ICA, London
31/10/05

“Aww, look how cute I am. Touch the Sov, touch the Sov!” shouted the diminutive MC as she stared at her run of looped videos filling up the giant screen behind her drummer. After tonight’s showing, it seems that everyone wants to get a bit of Sovereign, as she drew a crowd from all parts of the music spectrum – indie kids, grime kids, rockers and even a seventy year old granddad in shorts – but they were all united in amazement as Sov took them on a punk rock ride through old and new.

DJ Cameo opened the night by dropping some grime anthems to get the crowd warmed up, mixing in Kano’s “Ps & Qs” with Crazy Titch’s “Singalong” and blasting out the Mizz Beats remix of Sov’s latest single “Hoodie”. He was soon joined on stage by JME and Spekta who rinsed verse after verse of hard hitting rhymes over bass lines that defied the crowd’s digestive systems. After a good set of back and forth rapping, a solitary verse by Tinchy Stryder and the non-appearance of Wiley [who sat at the side of the stage for the duration], JME departed telling everyone it was time for the S. O. Veeee.

She took her time coming out but after her DJ had dropped a few bangers and her band strode out to get the party started, Sov appeared in a garish orange tracksuit sporting a Chucky mask, leaving us in no doubt what time of year it was. As soon as she’d taken it off though she was right up at the front of the stage and let the guitar kick in as she reeled off the massive old skool Sov cuts of “Blah Blah” and “Random”. The live band made a big difference to the songs and got the crowd moving in time with her movements, as she showed a seamless energy slicing through the beats with her high pitched distinctive touch.

The crossover hit “9 to 5” was next and the bouncy bass had everyone dancing without abandon before she hit us with some more older songs, the fantastic “Tango”, which asks what network you’re on, what’s your favourite colour and telling us she knows what our favourite fruit is, the Jentina-diss “Sad Ass Strippa” which she claimed laid to rest that grudge as she was moving on to Jessica Simpson next, and “Broom” which she said was a result of her knocking someone over with, you guessed it, a broom.

She finished with three new songs, “My England” had arms waving as she declared that we’re not all posh like the queen, her new single “Hoodie” which looks to be even bigger than her previous effort and the punk-laced “Public Warning”. Ordinarily, no grime MC could bring off songs like that, but the heavy crunching guitar and snapping snare allowed her to create an atmosphere unlike one you’d see at a rave, and would more likely see down the local rock venue.

Sov has also learnt how to handle the crowd. When I first saw her she didn’t know how to fill the time between songs, but this time round she had clearly mastered the art, getting a burping competition going, coming face to face with a girl in a gorilla suit and trying, unsuccessfully, to do a flick with a beer can. If anyone can save the hoodie, as she’s planning to take on Blair & co to do, its her. After tonight’s performance, everyone was in no doubt she’s got what it takes to go a long, long way. She is indeed, as she puts it, the biggest midget in the game, and we’d have it no other way.

Sam Hesketh