Rob Taylor

Earwicker Live - The Penguin Party & Bordeauxxx

It’s that time of the month again, and I find myself ready to sample the usual delights of Earwicker, and their free band showcase.

The stage is set, and the crowd is filtering in. Bordeauxxx enter the stage, two guitars, a bass, a drummer, a glockenspiel, minimoog, and four vocals. It looks somewhat hectic. My expectations are to be ripped in pieces as soon as they begin playing. Instead of an overload of sound from ten instruments, my ears were introduced to a texturally sparse and well managed song. Each instrument had it’s place. The minimoog only skips in when it has to. The guitars play their little pieces to fill in the gaps when they present themselves. Suddenly, everything breaks down, in some cases to some well timed and interesting hand clapping sections, or in some cases to some harmonically perfect 3-4 vocal acapella sections. All of this sums into a collection of lively pop songs that anyone can get their teeth into. Some cheeky little one beat stops (that I would usually argue should have been left in the nineties), they pull off to perfection, which is a shame because at other times their general timing slips up, detracting from all of these positives. Besides the lead singer, the band are all very static. Perhaps this was due to stage space, but I would like to see more movement from them.

Bordeauxxx wrap up their set, and everyone prepares themselves for The Penguin Party. Instantly, they begin to make me think of Rush, but a lot less progressive. Then, when I’d made my mind up that that’s what they were, some pseudo-jazz music pipes up, and then quickly trips back into solid rock. Towards the end, metal. It all seemed a little confused, and definitely seemed trapped in the 70s/80s. Contrasts between the two bands became instantly visible. The Penguin Party seem more well rehearsed, more comfortable, and technically speaking, just better. The dynamic between the band is amazing, reflecting with the audience. There’s a story or a comment between every song, something lacking with Bordeauxxx, and it paid off. The crowd were in hysterics at times. “Sorry, did we forget to set up your sarcasm mic?” It seems they could keep the party going all night. Towards the end, however, things became a little samey. The introduction of triggered material was too little too late. The extra excitement it bought couldn’t drag the songs into the realm of interesting, a point highlighted by a Madness influenced song (think Ska, but then played without feeling).

A young band with a lot of potential, but not quite there, and some older guys playing jack of all trades, getting the job done at a slightly sub-par level. It’s all sounding very negative, but it isn’t. The night was a fantastic one, all in all. The choice of headline act was clear. Until Bordeauxxx sort out there (albeit minor) issues, they won’t start getting the headline slot on a regular basis. When they eventually do, Bordeauxxx may well be a band to look out for! As for The Penguin Party, it was a little too repetitive. Something had to change, and the audience clearly felt the same way (represented by the fact they were dropping outside instead of staying to listen).

What a great night of music though. Bring on next month!