Bouncing Souls, P.O.S

It can't get much better than this, celebrating 20 years of a great band on the 20th of the month, and it's a Saturday to boot. Shame the curfew is at 10pm to make way for the club night afterwards.

I enter the Cockpit to the sounds of hip hop from Minneapolis rapper P.O.S, which seems a bit of a genre leap, but plenty of people are giving him a very warm welcome. Singer Greg from the Souls provided vocals on De La Soul's from P.O.S.' album 'Audition', so there's the connection. I hear that he sells out shows all the time, so this is a doubly good show for fans of him and Bouncing Souls, who he is supporting all tour, but I can not get into it.



The Bouncing Souls have always been such a down to earth band for me. The fact they are still going strong after 20 years with only one line up change (Michael McDermott took over drumming duties from Shal Khichi midway in 1999) shows what a close band they are, and this shines through in their songs. They start the show with 'True Believer' containing it's fantastic lyrics "I've met some people along the way / Some of them split, some of them stay / Some of them walk, some walk on by / I've got a few friends I'll love till I die / From all of these people, I try to learn / Some of them shine, some of them burn / Some of them rise, some of them fall / For good or bad, I've known them all."

I notice all the beer that is flying about during that song, and realise it is safe to enter and stay relatively dry before they jump into 'Kate Is Great' (about their manager Kate Hiltz, and she really is great, staying with them since the beginning), as no one would leave their place for a beer now. All the swaying and pogoing is exhausting but is a good way. Not many bands can connect with the crowd like the Souls do. Some say that Greg Attonito does little on stage, but his shy approach comes across well, as he dodges the many crowd surfers that trespass onto eh stage. At one point a guy knocks his mic out of his hand, but he quickly picks it up and ads it to the mic stand, then sings along a little and leaps back into the pit, causing a few smiles from the band.



Bassist Bryan Kienlen and guitarist Pete Steinkopf are more animated than Attonito in throwing out the lyrics and hovering over ecstatic crowd, but there is something about the singer that is enduring. From where I am, tucked behind a speaker, I can not make out drummer Michael McDermott but his beats do all the talking.

Tracks are from the band's entire back catalogue, with stand outs being the cover of Joe Gittleman /Avoid One Things' 'Leen On Sheena', 'That Song', 'Late Bloomer', the football tainted 'Here We Go', 'Manthem', 'Private Radio', 'Sing Along Forever' and 'Kids And Heroes'. The set is ended with 'Night On Earth' at around 9.50pm, with the band not that impressed with the 10pm curfew.

Everyone at the show seems to have had a great time, with bog roll flying on stage (Attonito catches it, then looks comically disgusted, tossing it back saying ("I touched it!"), and a never ending stream of crowdsurfers (friendly too, only a couple have to be thrown back to the shark pit). The name Bouncing Souls is less for the band and more for the effect they have on people listening to them. A great show, that should have gone on at least another half hour if not longer.

FUTURE GIGS

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