PINS
PINS are another band that seem to have ratcheted their game up another level since I last saw them. Their recent Bad Things EP is a defining leap forward, both musically and in terms of presentation – just watch their 20 minute film shot as an accompaniment, it is a work of art in itself. Perhaps it is their Manchester pedigree coming to maturation, or maybe Manc music fans sense that it time to adopt new heroes. Either way, PINS now seem to possess the confidence, the swagger and the songs to put the Warehouse City firmly back at the musical forefront.
Norwich duo Sink Ya Teeth have really been going places recently, signing to 1965 Records, releasing two new singles, and touring countrywide with Californian band '!!!'. This evening's opening set may be their last hometown performance for a while, and gives us a chance to remind ourselves just how far they have come over the last two years. Maybe it is the acoustics of the venue, but Gemma Cullingford's bass playing tonight seems more fluid than ever, sending its pulsating vibrancy pounding into every nook, crevice and corner of the room. Together with Maria Uzor's rhythms, samples and keys the live show is now way less primal and more Chicago house / New York loft. I always hear new influences when listening to Sink Ya Teeth, but tonight I am hearing New Order, Tom Tom Club and Talking Heads. Whilst obviously celebrating their success, any extraction from the Norwich circuit would now leave an aching cavity.
I loved Yassassin (someone told me their name is Turkish for 'long live') on both the occasions that they played Norwich Arts Centre earlier this year. They are a five piece rock outfit from London with seemingly boundless energy. Their song Social Politics hits you like a sucker punch hidden amidst grungy pop perfection. Pretty Face now seems even more relevant in the light of recent Hollywood disclosures. Cherry Pie is a sleazy ballad that, like most of the songs performed live, spirals into a crescendo of madness. With a lead vocalist and three guitarists all thrashing around on the Waterfront Studio's tiny stage, it's a wonder no-one on stage gets their teeth knocked out by the neck of a flailing bass guitar.
PINS' lead singer Faith Holgate is a formidable but charismatic figure, although chiselled good looks and an obvious flair for fashion will never alone provide a band with sufficient credibility. But when the voice delivers both power and passion, albeit mixed with a little strutted showmanship, you know you are on the right course. The energy on display from Lois McDonald's guitar playing on stage left is intense, counter-balanced by keyboard player Kyoko Swan's dignity and calm from the opposite flank. Sophie Galpin supplies drums from the rear whilst bass player Anna Donigan manages to maintain her cool whilst sweltering under the lights in a faux-fur jacket.
There are several new tracks in the set tonight, signs perhaps that a new album is on the way, but it is the tracks from Bad Thing that tick all the right boxes for me tonight. Serve The Rich is an angry anthem spat out with suitable venom, a marked and striking contrast from the early helplessness contained within the band's first single Luv U 4 Lyf.
Holgate is over the barriers and into the audience towards the end of the set, having previously been urging tonight's audience to come forward and dance. However, Girls Like Us needs no such encouragement, an anthemic finale that has everybody moving.
Anna Donigan takes over the microphone for the start of the encore, substituting the vocal parts spoken by Iggy Pop on Bad Thing's Aggraphobe. Meanwhile Faith Holgate straps on the bass. The resultant dark and atmospheric vibe, reminiscent of early Mogwai, subdues us slightly until audience members are summarily called up onto the stage to dance to All Hail and to remain for the desperate optimism that is Young Girls.
PINS have tonight turned on all the lights and pushed all the right buttons to create another unforgettable live show, a classic textbook example of audience engagement and solid rock and roll. They have all the right ingredients to be Manchester's next superband. Just remember where you saw them first.
