Start The Bus w/Aye Aye & DD/MM/YYYY
Actual Bird
It's no secret that there definitely are ups and downs to free shows. On the one hand it's great you can invite anybody along without having to worry about breaking even, paying anyone etc. But on the other, the show can end up being fairly passive. Whether this is down to the same psychology that has people still buying vinyl these days when mp3's are cheaper, movable, copyable and generally more useful, I don't know, but I guess paying for something and having ownership of it still has its place.
First on the bill, a band I had never come across before, who go by the name of Actual Bird. Having never seen them before I was forced to chuckle, finding that there wasn't enough room on the tiny stage for any of them to move at all, even driving the bass player to the floor for the whole set. Upon beginning I soon realised this rag tag mix of what appeared to be geeks, rockers and hippies, were churning out something pretty special. At first glance a vibe of 60's Led Zep and Sabbath was definitely there with the 5/4 time heavy guitar licks really giving off that 'Black Dog' kind of vibe. The vocalist was sporting that great nasal quality in his voice similar to that of Billy Talent or even At The Drive In. This band has it all as far as the rock element was concerned. Two synth players either side of the stage mimicking each other in their complete lack of movement made the electro feel they were trying to give off, but later I found it to seem a little contrived and unnecessary. The squeaky little korgs really just getting the crap kicked out of them by the guitars. Even so, I look forward to hearing more of this and I hope they try to take a more rock orientated route than the electro path, its unnecessary.
By Robbie Sattin, Bristol Live Music Scene