Flange gig review

This review is of the gig the band Flange played The Hope on September 18th 2007 along with Jalopy and Droptear Modelmaker.

Flange are a local Brighton based band who have been touring the circuit for some time now and clearly deserve greater recognition. The band plays early 90′s style grunge, but with a modern twist, both vocally and musically. They are only a 3 piece, but make a huge sound and are well worth checking out.

The band is made up of Seth, lead guitarist and vocals, Andy, vocals and bass and drummer Rowan.
The band have been known to dress extravagantly for their gigs, Seth often dresses as a woman, Andy wears red and black facepaint making him look not unlike Darth Maul trying his hand at being a rock star. Tonight however the band dressed moderately, Seth wore a Daniel Johnston t-shirt (full respect there), Andy some fancy trousers. The dress tonight matched the seriousness of the music though, they are no novelty band.

The first thing which struck me about the band were the 2 lead vocalists, each with their own unique style. Andy, bass guitarist sings in a classic grunge style, but in a strong and powerful way that means, unlike most bands of this type, you can actually understand what he is singing much of the time. Seth (lead guitarist) on the other hand sounds more like the devil incarnate. His screeching growl sometime provides either an unusual and slightly terrifying lead vocal, or a backing vocal adding reverb and strength to Andys. The result of the two combined gives an effect not unlike Frank Black’s two voices on The Pixies records. Musically they have far clearer, tighter sound than a lot of similar bands. The lead guitar plays intricate solos performed in a style more akin to Zepplin metal rather than the more common somewhat muddy sound of grunge.

It was clear that tonight the lucky few assembled saw a highly accomplished group of musicians who could wipe the floor with most of the other local bands round here, who all want to be the next Hard-Fi or Razorlight. Here was something a bit different, not rock for rocks sake, but catchy tunes, great displays of showmanship and above all, a sense of humour. Flange certainly have the talent to make it outside of the local scene, but sadly the market for this kind of music is dwindling, lets hope a resurgence comes soon, and if not let them be the ones to lead it!

For more on Flange check out the bands website Flange music, or their myspace.

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This entry was posted on Thursday, September 20th, 2007 at 6:00 pm and is filed under Brighton Gig Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.