The Old Romantic Killer Band - London Madame Jojo's
Artist profile:
The Old Romantic Killer Band
Date: 15/04/08
Rating: ****
Like most things that become more famous than they can handle, Soho has become a watered-down parody of its old self. Gone were the days when a wrong turn down an alley way would have you stabbed by heroin addicts, or a stumble into a bar would have your eyes disturbed by the herpes-filled genitalia of a drugged out man-whore. Ah, the memories. Instead there are bright lights and Jonny Foreigners. Even the dealers standing by the side of gentleman’s clubs under hood and coat offering various narcotics for your pleasure are now Polish.
But on a recent Tuesday night old-fashioned authenticity raised its wrinkled and craggy head once more at Madame Jojo’s, personified in two parts. The first instance was under the guise of solo support act Serious Sam Barrett, a man so talented he’ll never be famous; he’s simply too good for the fleeting, showy, image-based taste of fair-weather music fans that make up 99% of the UK population.
He came on with a twelve-string and a mic, and for half an hour sang songs that took you far away from pretentious girls in skimpy outfits, traffic, over-priced drinks, congestion and practically anything else to do with London. Instead, memories of classic Westerns, the stillness of an epic landscape disrupted only by the thin line of rising smoke from the home-grown tobacco burning in the barrel of an oak pipe, tall grass surrounding your vision as you lie still staring at the blue sky. Oh yeah, and sheep.
Hailing from Yorkshire, Barrett’s musical roots have clearly been defined by folk and blues from both sides of the pond. Traditional travelling folk singers across the country as well as staple acts like Steeleye Span and Ewan MacColl may all be counted as influences to this man’s unique yet traditional sound. His exceptional picking leads to a smooth yet raw background to the folk drawl he uses that Bob Dylan popularised so effectively in the 60s.
The audience couldn’t help but be captivated; the predictable but catchy songs demanded that much. Of the numbers he played, half were traditional folk songs he had re-arranged, the other half being original compositions. Such is Barrett’s ability to weave humorous, insightful yet charming and personal tales of drinking, sailors, lost love, growing pains, and of course sheep, that it’s almost impossible to know which ones were which. On the whole an excellent outing for a rising star in the folk world.
By the time the main act were on, the ambient but small venue was packed. Thunderous drumming and a distorted, reverb riddled guitar welcomed all and sundry to The Old Romantic Killer Band. Remember that name. It’s the only one of these long-winded multi-word names modern bands call themselves that you’ll ever need. As sure as Pluto is a planet, they’ll be huge.
With a screaming, dirty guitar playing rock and blues to a simple but energetic drum backdrop, it’s obvious initial comparisons will be made with the White Stripes, but the Old Romantics are a different prospect altogether. There’s more emphasis on blues, so much so that some songs play like a Who’s Who of classic riffs, composed and executed with authenticity and soul.
Where Harry and Greg (for they have no surnames), have created a sound unique to them is through the at times thunderous rhythmic sections of some of their material, playing like a barebones metal outfit in a garage. Indeed, while King, Waters and Hooker may take pride of place on the Old Romantics’ mantelpiece of influences, Pantera, Zeppelin and even Alice In Chains would also occupy prominent positions.
But they must share their greatest affinity with Jeff Buckley. Don’t let the myspace recordings fool you, Harry’s live voice and range are at times eerily reminiscent of the late great, and the whole Old Romantics sound has the same feel of Buckley’s early work with Gary Lucas, in particular the louder ‘Songs To No One’ tracks like ‘Eternal Life’ and ‘Malign Fiesta’.
With Harry standing in profile throughout the set, they played wild, thrashing versions of their back catalogue, jumping and jittering about like squirrels that were being electrocuted on hot coals. (Why squirrels? Why not.) Greg hit the drums twice as hard as Mark Speight took the loss of his girlfriend, but it was really Harry who was in a foul mood. Assaulting his guitar, flailing and swinging wildly, playing solos with open bottles of beer, jumping off the stage to improvise yet more solos on the floor by the crowd, he was the personification of the punk cliché. The only thing he left out was the dive off the stage, which considering the front of the crowd consisted of scantily-clad stick-thin girls with the combined strength of a house of cards, would’ve been fun for groping opportunities but highly damaging.
An even livelier than usual version of the song ‘Pigs’ made quite an impact, particularly the forceful crescendo towards the end of the song, filling not just the room but every pore on the hair-raised skin of each scenester with the sound of a rough, contorted blues riff of the highest order.
Even so, the highlight came towards the end of their set, with an astounding rendition of what may be their best song, the instant classic ‘Lover’s Pass’. That such a track could be so catchy, hooky and radio-friendly yet remain faithful to its blues origin is a testament to the Old Romantics’ ability in songcraft and musicianship.
They finished their rampant performance with a louder than previously thought possible version of their most promoted track, ‘You Don’t Know How To Love’, a track similar to if Clutch played White Stripes songs. After a finish that ascended into a pleasurable chaotic noise they promptly exited the stage, leaving the crowd to catch its breath.
In a market filled with specific ‘genres’, The Old Romantic Killer Band seem to have carved their own ‘angry blues’ niche, with longevity added to some immediately listenable music. They’re a different band every time you see them, but due to a fantastic stage presence and the strongest songs of any up-and-coming act today, they’re always memorable.
Muhammad Odeh
The Old Romantic Killer Band Myspace
Buy The Old Romantic Killer Band CDs | Buy The Old Romantic Killer Band mp3s | Buy The Old Romantic Killer Band Tickets | Buy The Old Romantic Killer Band Merch
Date: 15/04/08
Rating: ****
Like most things that become more famous than they can handle, Soho has become a watered-down parody of its old self. Gone were the days when a wrong turn down an alley way would have you stabbed by heroin addicts, or a stumble into a bar would have your eyes disturbed by the herpes-filled genitalia of a drugged out man-whore. Ah, the memories. Instead there are bright lights and Jonny Foreigners. Even the dealers standing by the side of gentleman’s clubs under hood and coat offering various narcotics for your pleasure are now Polish.
But on a recent Tuesday night old-fashioned authenticity raised its wrinkled and craggy head once more at Madame Jojo’s, personified in two parts. The first instance was under the guise of solo support act Serious Sam Barrett, a man so talented he’ll never be famous; he’s simply too good for the fleeting, showy, image-based taste of fair-weather music fans that make up 99% of the UK population.
He came on with a twelve-string and a mic, and for half an hour sang songs that took you far away from pretentious girls in skimpy outfits, traffic, over-priced drinks, congestion and practically anything else to do with London. Instead, memories of classic Westerns, the stillness of an epic landscape disrupted only by the thin line of rising smoke from the home-grown tobacco burning in the barrel of an oak pipe, tall grass surrounding your vision as you lie still staring at the blue sky. Oh yeah, and sheep.
Hailing from Yorkshire, Barrett’s musical roots have clearly been defined by folk and blues from both sides of the pond. Traditional travelling folk singers across the country as well as staple acts like Steeleye Span and Ewan MacColl may all be counted as influences to this man’s unique yet traditional sound. His exceptional picking leads to a smooth yet raw background to the folk drawl he uses that Bob Dylan popularised so effectively in the 60s.
The audience couldn’t help but be captivated; the predictable but catchy songs demanded that much. Of the numbers he played, half were traditional folk songs he had re-arranged, the other half being original compositions. Such is Barrett’s ability to weave humorous, insightful yet charming and personal tales of drinking, sailors, lost love, growing pains, and of course sheep, that it’s almost impossible to know which ones were which. On the whole an excellent outing for a rising star in the folk world.
By the time the main act were on, the ambient but small venue was packed. Thunderous drumming and a distorted, reverb riddled guitar welcomed all and sundry to The Old Romantic Killer Band. Remember that name. It’s the only one of these long-winded multi-word names modern bands call themselves that you’ll ever need. As sure as Pluto is a planet, they’ll be huge.
With a screaming, dirty guitar playing rock and blues to a simple but energetic drum backdrop, it’s obvious initial comparisons will be made with the White Stripes, but the Old Romantics are a different prospect altogether. There’s more emphasis on blues, so much so that some songs play like a Who’s Who of classic riffs, composed and executed with authenticity and soul.
Where Harry and Greg (for they have no surnames), have created a sound unique to them is through the at times thunderous rhythmic sections of some of their material, playing like a barebones metal outfit in a garage. Indeed, while King, Waters and Hooker may take pride of place on the Old Romantics’ mantelpiece of influences, Pantera, Zeppelin and even Alice In Chains would also occupy prominent positions.
But they must share their greatest affinity with Jeff Buckley. Don’t let the myspace recordings fool you, Harry’s live voice and range are at times eerily reminiscent of the late great, and the whole Old Romantics sound has the same feel of Buckley’s early work with Gary Lucas, in particular the louder ‘Songs To No One’ tracks like ‘Eternal Life’ and ‘Malign Fiesta’.
With Harry standing in profile throughout the set, they played wild, thrashing versions of their back catalogue, jumping and jittering about like squirrels that were being electrocuted on hot coals. (Why squirrels? Why not.) Greg hit the drums twice as hard as Mark Speight took the loss of his girlfriend, but it was really Harry who was in a foul mood. Assaulting his guitar, flailing and swinging wildly, playing solos with open bottles of beer, jumping off the stage to improvise yet more solos on the floor by the crowd, he was the personification of the punk cliché. The only thing he left out was the dive off the stage, which considering the front of the crowd consisted of scantily-clad stick-thin girls with the combined strength of a house of cards, would’ve been fun for groping opportunities but highly damaging.
An even livelier than usual version of the song ‘Pigs’ made quite an impact, particularly the forceful crescendo towards the end of the song, filling not just the room but every pore on the hair-raised skin of each scenester with the sound of a rough, contorted blues riff of the highest order.
Even so, the highlight came towards the end of their set, with an astounding rendition of what may be their best song, the instant classic ‘Lover’s Pass’. That such a track could be so catchy, hooky and radio-friendly yet remain faithful to its blues origin is a testament to the Old Romantics’ ability in songcraft and musicianship.
They finished their rampant performance with a louder than previously thought possible version of their most promoted track, ‘You Don’t Know How To Love’, a track similar to if Clutch played White Stripes songs. After a finish that ascended into a pleasurable chaotic noise they promptly exited the stage, leaving the crowd to catch its breath.
In a market filled with specific ‘genres’, The Old Romantic Killer Band seem to have carved their own ‘angry blues’ niche, with longevity added to some immediately listenable music. They’re a different band every time you see them, but due to a fantastic stage presence and the strongest songs of any up-and-coming act today, they’re always memorable.
Muhammad Odeh
The Old Romantic Killer Band Myspace
Buy The Old Romantic Killer Band CDs | Buy The Old Romantic Killer Band mp3s | Buy The Old Romantic Killer Band Tickets | Buy The Old Romantic Killer Band Merch
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