Two Wounded Birds: There's, er, four of them
Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar: Wednesday, December 7 2011
Not many bands should relish having Ice Black Birds opening for them.
The Brighton four-piece don’t so much warm you up as set you on fire with their garage-rock concoction of bumper riffs, growling and whooping vocals and pounding basslines.
They are far from one-trick ponies, though; tonight they show some nifty songwriting finesse.
No-one Loves Me Like You Do starts off sounding like a bourbon soaked lament from the Deep South before clattering and careering into a rollicking, furiously paced, foot stomper.
Similarly, closer 22:22 is a taut, rock and roll riot where spiky vocals and punchy bass verses are interspersed by screeching lead guitar.
It’s like the Jim Jones Revue knocking seven bells of shit out of White Denim to a high-octane, classic rock soundtrack.
After that, it was going to be hard for three-piece Young Boys not to appear lightweight.
In fairness, they peddled their indie pop schtick with as much gusto as could be expected from three skinny, pale-faced lads, but too many of their admittedly catchy tunes were either overpowered by grating, plinky, plonky lead guitar or failed to stay in the memory for more than a minute after they finished.
Their strongest song was a break from norm, sounding like a cross between an homage to a Sixties US prom night with some substandard Jarvis Cocker style ramblings over the top.
If you decide to check them out, remember, they’re a fucker to google – especially at work.
And so to Two Wounded Birds. After grabbing our attention at this year’s Great Escape, the Margate four-piece continue to enthral and beguile in equal measure.
On paper they sound absurd, but live they are exhilarating. It’s nigh on impossible to know what Johnny Danger (really) ands his three cohorts are going to sound like from one song to the next.
There’s some Buzzcocks-style pure power pop, a beefed-up Richard Hawley-esque croon-along and a selection of almost old school surf rock rhythms with completely contradictory, yet resoundingly impressive, desolate vocals and scything chords over the top.
With his jet back barnet, leather jacket and jolts and jerks, Danger makes a fine frontman too, especially as he spits out the blistering early single All We Wanna Do.
Now signed to uber cool label Moshi Moshi, Two Wounded Birds are going to soar.
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