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After another cocktail reception, hosted by the kind folk at MCPS-PRS, it was time for the MUSEXPO Europe faithful to venture out into the cold, wet and later on snowy London weather to watch another night of handpicked bands.
Hailing from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Domenica are a hard rock quartet fronted by former teen model Bekki. But there's nothing postured about their fiercely aggressive live show at Metro tonight. Reminding us of bands like POD and Evanescence (in that they have some pop hooks as well as strong rock riffs), their metal chops come to the fore in the live show, which almost split it up. 'I Love My Gun' is the recommended listening from their MySpace.
Fabienne Holloway was a revelation for many at her Borderline show. Previously signed to Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam, this 17 year-old English girl is now out of that deal, but already has a wealth of experience in the business and it shows in her confident, at times effortless performance. Her cover of Etta James' 'I'd Rather Go Blind' was spine-tingling, even if some of her original material might need fine-tuning. On that note, songwriter Diane Warren has chosen to work with her - little wonder given this fine display. She mastered the slow jams and the uptown Motown-esque numbers didn't go down too badly either. A huge voice, and masses of potential.
Another Winnipeg band followed at Metro. Floor Thirteen make high-energy rock in a classic rock vein. Singer Jeremy Koz has quite the voice on him, a rasping rock voice that would have Robert Plant reaching for the throat lozenges. They immediately struck us as owing a debt to Jet in their commercial sound. A refreshingly energetic show to warm the cockles of the frozen crowd, they also win the 'Rock Posturing' award for shapes thrown.
Swiss band The Bianca Story were an interesting prospect. Not quite new-wave nor post-punk, they blended a mish-mash of genres, never settling on one (even throwing in the odd bit of synth, which we approved of). Dark, moody art rock to melodic, danceable indie-pop, they're almost unnervingly erratic in their broad-minded approach to musical style. Recorded looping sample of the Musexpo crowd -participation could have gone horribly wrong, but instead showed they had a sense of fun too.
British Ska/Punk outfit The King Blues are that rarest of things, a young band with a genuinely political approach to their work. They were born out a creative squat in London's east end and vocally support anti-racism and anti-capitalism agendas. Happily they deliver their anger with protest songs that have a raucous reggae-tinged sound. Now signed to Field Recordings/Island in the UK, The King Blues have a special blend that deserves to spread to other territories too – seek out their forthcoming second album 'Save The World, Get The Girl' when it arrives.
Melbourne band The Temper Trap attracted many an A&R down to Borderline. It was worth the trip, if only to prove that there's much more to Australian music than Jet and Wolfmother. Singer & guitarist Dougy’s sweet vocal drives the sound, which we couldn't begin to find comparisons to. Pitchfork, those arbiters of fashionable music, did try though and said that their new single 'Sweet Disposition' was "an elegant, radio-friendly anthem, with ringing U2-style guitars and portentous Chris Martin-style vocals". Smart song progression, entrancing vocals and some standout songs make us want to hear their full length debut even more. They recently completed the album with UK producer Jim Abbiss (Bjork, Placebo and Arctic Monkeys).Check out the video for 'Sweet Disposition'. We hope those A&R folk brought their chequebooks.
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[All Photos Courtsey of KC Morse]
Hailing from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Domenica are a hard rock quartet fronted by former teen model Bekki. But there's nothing postured about their fiercely aggressive live show at Metro tonight. Reminding us of bands like POD and Evanescence (in that they have some pop hooks as well as strong rock riffs), their metal chops come to the fore in the live show, which almost split it up. 'I Love My Gun' is the recommended listening from their MySpace.Fabienne Holloway was a revelation for many at her Borderline show. Previously signed to Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam, this 17 year-old English girl is now out of that deal, but already has a wealth of experience in the business and it shows in her confident, at times effortless performance. Her cover of Etta James' 'I'd Rather Go Blind' was spine-tingling, even if some of her original material might need fine-tuning. On that note, songwriter Diane Warren has chosen to work with her - little wonder given this fine display. She mastered the slow jams and the uptown Motown-esque numbers didn't go down too badly either. A huge voice, and masses of potential.Another Winnipeg band followed at Metro. Floor Thirteen make high-energy rock in a classic rock vein. Singer Jeremy Koz has quite the voice on him, a rasping rock voice that would have Robert Plant reaching for the throat lozenges. They immediately struck us as owing a debt to Jet in their commercial sound. A refreshingly energetic show to warm the cockles of the frozen crowd, they also win the 'Rock Posturing' award for shapes thrown.Swiss band The Bianca Story were an interesting prospect. Not quite new-wave nor post-punk, they blended a mish-mash of genres, never settling on one (even throwing in the odd bit of synth, which we approved of). Dark, moody art rock to melodic, danceable indie-pop, they're almost unnervingly erratic in their broad-minded approach to musical style. Recorded looping sample of the Musexpo crowd -participation could have gone horribly wrong, but instead showed they had a sense of fun too.British Ska/Punk outfit The King Blues are that rarest of things, a young band with a genuinely political approach to their work. They were born out a creative squat in London's east end and vocally support anti-racism and anti-capitalism agendas. Happily they deliver their anger with protest songs that have a raucous reggae-tinged sound. Now signed to Field Recordings/Island in the UK, The King Blues have a special blend that deserves to spread to other territories too – seek out their forthcoming second album 'Save The World, Get The Girl' when it arrives.Melbourne band The Temper Trap attracted many an A&R down to Borderline. It was worth the trip, if only to prove that there's much more to Australian music than Jet and Wolfmother. Singer & guitarist Dougy’s sweet vocal drives the sound, which we couldn't begin to find comparisons to. Pitchfork, those arbiters of fashionable music, did try though and said that their new single 'Sweet Disposition' was "an elegant, radio-friendly anthem, with ringing U2-style guitars and portentous Chris Martin-style vocals". Smart song progression, entrancing vocals and some standout songs make us want to hear their full length debut even more. They recently completed the album with UK producer Jim Abbiss (Bjork, Placebo and Arctic Monkeys).Check out the video for 'Sweet Disposition'. We hope those A&R folk brought their chequebooks.*******************************************
[All Photos Courtsey of KC Morse]
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