REVIEW: BATTLES AT CARDIFF SOLUS (26/06/11)
Tonight’s line-up is one for drumming geeks. Featuring revered stickman John Stanier, formerly of Helmet and Tomahawk, Battles became known to the wider world with 2007 single Atlas, a furious seven-minute experimental workout that, if you’re unfamiliar with, you’d probably recognise from a myriad adverts and TV shows. Despite such a level of mainstream exposure, Battles are first and foremost an arty, experimental band, with thundering drumming competing with esoteric arrangements and bizarre singing for what can be a challenging listen.
The supporting acts for tonight are noticeably cut from the same cloth. Both Truckers of Husk and Islet feature more percussion than you can shake a drumstick at, as well as angular guitar lines, fret-tapping and staccato vocals.
The headliners are now performing as a three-piece, after main vocalist Tyondai Braxton left last year under a bit of a cloud. Having seen them before during the Mirrored tour, I would say they actually works better as a three piece in a live context. The group now have more of a cohesive on-stage dynamic and seem more in-sync, whereas a four piece a gig felt a bit like watching four guys randomly wandering on and off stage, fiddling with buttons and occasionally playing a guitar part. Kicking of with Africastle, their performance immediately establishes a more forceful impact than that of the previous line-up.
The loss of Braxton lead to the decision to jetison all material prior to current album Gloss Drop (which the departing vocalist had already worked on, forcing the remaining trio to rewrite and record all the tracks without his contribution) from the live show. So while Atlas and Race: In are much missed, the confidence and ease of the trio’s performance more than makes up for it. Guitarist, keyboard player and lanky Adrian Brody-lookalike Ian Williams in particular seems to enjoy the show, and even busts a move when waiting to perform his parts.
The two large horizontal screens behind the group are used to good effect for songs on the new record with vocals, with the album’s guest vocalists having recorded their performance on video. Blonde Redhead’s Kazu Makino appearance early on for Sweetie & Shag is a particular highlight, as is Chilean artist Matias Aguayo on kick-off single Ice Cream, although he doesn’t seem as adept at voguing in front of the camera as Makino does. Gary Numan’s appearance on My Machines (the most Gary Numan song title ever) is … a bit scary. The sight of his lived-in fizzog, still rocking the guyliner, projected in a giant six feet tall close-up is definitely post-watershed entertainment.
Throughout Stanier beats his drum with machine-like precision and Hulk-like fury. By the time of the third song, Domincan Fade, he is already absolutely drenched in sweat. He is placed front and centre of the stage, with his trademark gigantic cymbal on a really high pole offering a visual focal point.
The set itself if fairly crisp and concise, ending at the 45 minute mark, leaving some of the new album out. This isn’t really a source of complaint, as by the end of closing number Futura the intricate, propulsive and dynamic Battles sound leaves one feeling quite overwhelmed.
They do return for an encore, in which guitarist and bassist Dave Konopka engages with a spot of awkward but well-received banter, sarcastically agreeing to play a Jackson 5 song and attempting to win over the Cardiff audience with the Welsh greeting of ‘shw mea’. After the excitement of Futura, the choice of encore song – Sundome – seems a bit anti-climatic, being the album’s most tentative moment and featuring no drums for the first four minutes. This seems a bit like AC/DC doing one last song with Angus, although Stanier does return as the song picks up pace, wearing the same sweat-soaked shirt. I truly dread to think about the smell.
Words and photo: Paul McGarvey
