Hard-Fi,Boy Kill Boy Live Review @ Ritz Ballroom (Manchester) - 06 Dec 2005

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Live Review

The Bravery with some British soul is the first impression given off by Londoners Boy Kill Boy, as they paraded their latest keyboard fired single 'Back Again'. The latter mentioned instrument was the key to the set, as it set the tone to each song and hinted at the fact that this outfit's debut album due out in May next year, should be a kaleidoscope of zapping and tripping guitars topped off by broad keyboard riffs. The throaty vocals concealed within the zapping stand out number; 'Six Minutes' provided bite and a bit a prog rock to an earnest and soaring set. Boy Kill Boy has the blueprint to be one of the bands of 2006!

The caustic brashness of The Clash colliding into a whirlwind of bolshie Morrissey styled urbanity was served up as the main course of the evening, by a bunch of amiable and spirited guys from Staines. The dance friendly and electro jolting 'Better Do Better' was most noticeable early on for the vibrant crowd reaction that it evoked. Front man; Richard Archer was the embodiment of liberty by imploring people free themselves from the daily grind and inspiring crowd involvement at every opportunity. This was easy for him to do during a snappy cover of The White Stripes' fan favourite; 'Seven Nation Army'

The crowd pleasing 'Hard To Beat' that must have been instrumental in getting the band a Mercury Prize nomination for debut album 'Stars Of CCTV, ended a ballsy set that contained enough depth to justify some of the hype that this outfit has attracted. Shuffling, shimmying, mild gyrating, bold bouncing and whole hearted singing made up the crowd's response to the finale produced by way of 'Living For The Weekend'. The honesty and belief of Hard-Fi helped them to pull off a pleasing set, defying the pressure, as you could sense that there were some people present tonight hoping that they would fall flat on their faces.

David Adair