Blackjacket / Messina / The Magnificent

Like the Fenton down the road, here we have a tiny pub with a venue room upstairs big enough to swing a cat in, with no ventilation (the ceiling fans must be just for show). The intimacy or feeling of claustrophobia, whichever you fancy, and the feeling that you could be witnessing something special with so few people means that these shows are the most memorable.



Fast Point are on the bill first after a line-up switch, though I miss them with the early kick off. The Magnificent from Leeds are next, punching the sweaty air with punk similar to Rancid and in some ways The Clash. They have members of Buzzkill, That Fucking Tank, and more established underground bands in Leeds.

There are funny quips along the way, such as how one songs is about a guy who never wipes his bottom (good friend material) and other comical statements. Sadly bassist Carl Glover is leaving the band after this and their Holmfirth gig tomorrow, so it may be a little while until they return to the fold.

'Lifetime' has a hint of 'I Fought The Law' in its riffs, and their cover of 'Olympia WA' by Rancid is great (even if the verses get repeated by mistake). A spanking set from some top musicians.



Next up it's the first gig for Messina, formed from some of Wakefield's finest (Milloy, Calcutecs, Dugong, Everybody Is Going To Die). After a year of practising the intense prog rock style they are finally hitting the road to showcase it (after a couple of warm up shows late last year). The band's music centres around 'Opora' and the fictional story of 'Carducci', set in Messina, the so called cursed city in Italy.

Matt Broadbent is like a man on a yo yo, running for the crowd and pulling back throughout the set. There is a slight hitch with Raymond Tovey's vast array of guitar pedals, well one of them, during the last song ("To be fair it could be anything!") but this is quickly solved and just causes the crowd to enjoy the set even more.

'Dead Man' is a cracking swirl of music and vocals, 'Answers' features riffs that RATM would be proud of, and new single (due out in May) 'Split Your Heart With An Arrow', shows the sadness of the tale they tell. Again all amazing songs by truly talented people.



Finally the night ends with Blackjacket from Canada, the only band not local to Leeds. Their 80's hardcore sound hits you straight in the face, but I struggle to grab hold of any structure in the songs. They label it as unpredictable, but the melodies they have can not save the lack of a basic tune.

They are a passionate eco rock band, into peace and being vegans so I can not hold much against them. However the guitarist Dave Baksh used to be in Sum 41, so that does knock a few points off for me... The room has emptied slightly for their set, but I do believe (not wanting to sound old here) but it was too loud for the space we were in, with the amps kicking out full pelt bass and drums, mashing the sound up too much. Let hope they can sort that out for the rest of the tour.

FUTURE GIGS

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