The Horrors Live Review @ Academy (Manchester) - 24 Mar 2007

The Horrors Live Review @ Academy (Manchester) - 24 Mar 2007

The Horrors

Live Review

In true Sesame Street fashion, the word of the evening is “premature”. The fashionably late entrance of the Faris Badwan fronted, quirky London beat thrusters The Horrors. Implies that every effort is being made to veil the fact that maybe this band isn’t quite ready to try and bring the quirky, out there and sinister thrust shown on debut album Strange House, to the live setting. The crowd too, are showing signs of not quite knowing how to respond, struggling to form a rambunctious pit, as Jack The Ripper takes on a more rustic and unpolished electro touch than normal. Count In Fives brings rhythm to the stage and viewing area and Badwan’s vocals are imbued with some croaky grizzle, to ride over the blistering beats and Poison Ivy riffing and percussion. The haunting stride of She Is The New Thing gives that 70s rock and a goth shake to matters that brings up the buoyancy level. The front man indulges in and inspires more clambering on various suspensions than in a monkey pen.

The biting, fuzzed out stomp of Sheena Is A Parasite is the album offering that takes on extra sting in a live setting and has an industrial undertone, hinting at a possible area of expansion for this feral five-piece. In between songs the increasing number of people towards the front middle, spend the time preparing a circle with geometric precision. Where’s the spontaneity eh? Mind you it is hard not to know what to expect, as The Horrors do tend to have a live groove that they find and stick to for the large part of this seven songs, sub 30 minute set. Given the range of non-album material floating around the internet, a deviation from Strange House might have added a bit more intrigue and time to set.

David Adair

You may be interested in

Gigs for Academy

Adverts - Advertise here

Site Meter