The Blood Arm

"I like all the girls, and all the girls like me!” Not some arrogant self-involved statement by this reviewer, but the infectious chorus of the latest dance/indie crossover anthem that’s going to scrape at the inside of your skull like a malignant brain tumour the size of a prize melon.

It’s also the main reason why we’re all jammed shoulder to shoulder, blinking matter-of-factly, wondering just when the only song worthy of stealing The Automatics novelty track crown, is going to be played.

The Blood Arm are flavour of the month, and their brand of disco-tipped indie is certainly a familiar one. The Killers, and The Bravery are all part of this same movement that reaches back to the 80’s and repackages the whole retro-electro scene.

	"it was clear that the foot-stomping brilliance that is The Blood Arm’s ‘Lie Lover Lie’ album is a record that doesn’t seem to carry across to a live audience all that well."

By the time the universes most frighteningly irritating introduction was underway, given by quite easily the most histrionic American I have ever been pained to witness, I was already reaching for a copy of O J Simpson’s "If I did".

While ranting about how The Blood Arm are better than Jesus, then God, he went on to explain how he’d also been infected by the radioactive Isotope Polonium-210, but instead of him falling victim to the KGB, he’d been transported to a higher place and then turned into some mystical….for god sake, somebody shut him up please!

With the introduction over, the band took to the stage – now set up for a potentially embarrassing set if they don’t quite live up to the promise that this is the “best band in the world”.

From the outset I’m not quite sure if lead singer Nathaniel Fregoso is singing the same song as the band are playing, it sounds a little awkward, and almost seems out of time.

Fregoso’s overtly camp mannerisms were delivered in spades throughout the performance, even to the extent that he jumped down from stage and started snogging any guy that seemed to take his fancy.

As a frontman, Freguso was fairly entertaining, singing from the top of amps, getting the whole crowd to sit down while he sung from the middle, and constantly engaging his audience. But for all his efforts, the audience never seemed that engaged.

Tonight was all really about one song and even that ('Suspicious Characters') didn’t seem to have too much effect on an audience who you would expect to be lapping up such feel good music that just begs you to dance.

By the end of their set it was clear that the foot-stomping brilliance that is The Blood Arm’s ‘Lie Lover Lie’ album is a record that doesn’t seem to carry across to a live audience all that well. Even the pounding opener ‘Stay Put!’ didn’t have the same infectious drive that makes it so appealing on record.

All in all a good band on record, who despite being fairly entertaining on stage, don’t quite have the live presence to match their recorded material.

FUTURE GIGS

sorry, we currently have no gigs listed for this act.