4th Underground Review

90th Underground!!!

I can't believe it. This is the fourth time I have had to review an Underground show. And you know what? It doesn't get any easier. Yeah I could just get drunk and carry on conversations with other people, not really listening to the band and then just giving a quick overview of the band's performance. But, we all know that is not my style. I sat at The Melting Pot on my own and began to write my notes.

This was the 90th Underground and I guess is a small milestone for Chris B. She would be included in tonight's line-up, performing with Thinking Out Loud. Other bands on the cards include Speaka, Cicadas, Shotgun Politics and Hazden. The fact that I was doing the TOL review meant there was added pressure on me from Chris. I couldn't be too harsh or I might not be able to write another review again, yet I didn't want to be biased and suck up too much. Lol.

Here is just a taste of the review I gave each of the band. If you want to read the whole review then please go to the Underground website here:http://www.undergroundhk.com/v2/?p=606

Speaka: www.myspace.com/ speakathe band

"As Speaka approached the stage, the lead singer, Ben, announced his drunkedness to the crowd and he yelled confidently “We’re Speaka!” Then, they started the first song which had the speed and energy of a Blink 182 song. The lead guitarist, Fai, led this punk song with his awesome rock stance and all of the members looked very confident on the stage. Ben’s voice got better as he warmed into the chorus and he had the words ringing in my head, “What I left behind.” I was wondering if this was a love song? Next thing I know the song was finished and the Melting Pot was crowded with people clapping in applause."

Cicadas:

"The third song is the first song I heard the name of, it is called ‘Joker’s attack’. I found out later that this song was actually a cover of a Brian Jonestown Massacre song. Sounds creepy. I could keenly hear the mandolin start this song off nicely. This was a more catchy and pacey song that the audience could do a little jig to. I noticed the guy next to me closing his eyes, shaking his head and tapping his head in a daze as he listened to this song. Gareth on the bass was superb in this song and the vocal trills were also very exciting. The song ended with yet another loud cheer from the crowd."

Thinking Out Loud: http://www.thinkingoutloud.com.hk/

"TOL’s third song of the night was off the Underground Compilation CD no 2 and is my favourite song off it. In this song it’s not so much the music that is the hook for me. No, it’s definitely the lyrics. The lyrics in the verse are great, so contemporary and catchy. “I could be a centrefold edition, bigger than Pamela Anderson… I could be any woman I want to be, yeah!” I especially like it when Chris sings the oohs and ahhs and holds the notes for a long time. The crowd especially liked the song and gave them lots of praise."

Shotgun Politics: http://www.alivenotdead.com/shotgunpolitics

"For their 7 th song they asked Chris B to join them to sing this song. I was not sure what to think? What should I expect from this crossover? Were they going to play a Shotgun Politics song or a Chris B song? The song did start off familiar, yet different. Then, I heard the chorus and the familiar line, “masturbating to a magazine’ and I realised that I had heard this song already tonight. It was a TOL song. They played the song with respect, but were just lacking the sax styles of Mysterious B. The crowd cheered loudly."

Hazden: www.myspace.com/ hazden

"Faye introduced her next song, ‘I see it’, but I couldn’t quite hear what she was saying. She did go on to say that all of her songs are about life. Then, the song started slowly and it didn’t seem that all of the instruments were on time together until the song sped up. Faye’s voice sounded especially good in this song, she could reach all of the high notes and she even did a little bit of screaming at the right times. The song ended like it had started, slow and chilled out."

Remember, if you want to read more of the review please go to:-http://www.undergroundhk.com/v2/?p=606