Heavy Lungs - Wild Paths
The first show of the evening was The Claque. Massive discordant guitars filled the room with radical changes in dynamics. All of this was accompanied with serene vocals. They were not as tight as the other bands of the night, and unfortunately the room was pretty sparse at this point. Nonetheless, fairy lights and foliage covered the wooden beams in the roof of the showroom, creating a wonderful atmosphere. The stage was low, and with the band in spitting distance, energy radiated from them.
Following The Claque was the superb Egyptian Blue. Riding the wave of other post-punk indie bands such as Shame, LIFE and Fontaines D.C., they had energy and attitude in spades. The sound didn’t seem to be working for them at the start. After spending about fifteen minutes changing, they walked off, heading outside – with obvious frustration, but when they came back it would seem that it made the set all the more engaging and frustrated. Tight, anxious rhythms flanked the wide choruses – Collateral is probably one of their standouts, both live and on record. Lead singer and guitarist Andy Buss wore his influences on his t-shirt in the form of the Metz, noise-punk band from Canada. They may have the veneer of indie-rock, but the undertone of post-punk attitude kept them safely out of monotony. Angular and erratic, drawing from New Wave rhythms, but more tense, they’re certainly interesting and worth trying to catch live.
It finally came to the main event, Voodoo Daddy’s now getting noticeably packed. The low ceilings and slightly understated stage made it feel all the busier. Before long Heavy Lungs are on the stage and opened with the raw Half Full. Danny Nedelko launched himself into the crowd as they tore into ‘Self Worth’, hugging gig-goers and creating off-the-scale levels of energy in the room. He walked to the back of the room, climbed on the tables and chairs of a pair of seated punters. Throughout the night Danny jumped into the crowd, jostling and embracing fans. The sound was massive, the guitars soared, supported by relentless drums and bass, the bass bit and growled ferociously. The records feel some what clean, but everything at their live show was brutally dirty, it was a masterclass of showmanship and the intimacy of the show made it a visceral experience. One of the highlights of Wild Paths so far is that it has brought together artists that would usually not end up in Norwich, and put them in small venues and this was a glittering example of that. They finished with Unfaithful One, which halfway through turned into a Stooges infused rollercoaster, a fantastic way to end a great performance.
