The Day I Snapped have a new guitarist since I last saw them, none other than Richie Dropout, although I guess it's Richie TDIS now, and he seems right at home. This is also to be the last show with Geoff on bass.
It has to be said that the sound is a touch on the dodgy side with the vocals particularly low, but Alan still manages to make an impression as he sings every song as if it still hurts. Hopefully they can get their line-up settled soon, as they have some really good songs and are certainly developing into an excellent live band.
Stupid Acting Smart also suffers from the sound problems but seem to be playing some pleasant little tunes with dual male/female vocals and it's always cool to see a girl actually playing guitar too. They are slower and a bit mellower than the kind of stuff I like but I know that many others love this kind of thing.
It's the same story with Pylon, they appear to have good tunes, heartfelt lyrics and well I guess some bands just don't want to play shorter, faster and louder! There are a couple of times when their songs build up and I start to enjoy it, but it's just not enough for me.
California's Gameface, on the other hand, know how to take melodies with the most effortless pitch-perfect vocals and keep a speed and intensity that keeps even me happy. The sound problems are finally sorted out when Jeff, the singer, is informed that all we can hear is "drums" and asks for "more of everything!"
Although to be fair to the drummer, you would still hear him if he was playing in the pub round the corner! They play 'The Big Deal', 'What I Learned in School', 'Boy Wonder', 'My Star', 'Daylight Savings' and they all sound just as perfect live too, but there is a very small crowd here tonight and the guys from Gameface do seem rather bemused by their apparent lack of popularity, although in no way is it reflected in their performance.
In a scarily quiet moment between songs there is the most tuneful request that I've heard, as Craig (TDIS drummer) sings the first line of 'Song'. The band seems impressed, but say they haven't practiced that one. They finish their set with 'Pirate Song', switch off the amplifiers and tell us they're finished, but after a bit of coaxing they switch back on and play a genuine encore of 'Laughable' and 'The Warmest Heart Attack'.
