LifeArcade!

Avenge Vulture Attack

w/ Toyships and First 2 Fire

Arch 635, Clapham North, 8^th September 2011

Ever since Debenhams went out of stock and I have had to purchase my carpets in Wales, London has not had the best of reputations recently. Therefore I must admit to being dubious when stepping out of the Tube station and onto the streets of Clapham North. Thankfully, the dust had well and truly settled and even formed a nice path into the Arch 635 bar. This path also led me to believe that London’s music scene is as bustling as ever, with new, up and coming venues developing all the time - this one being one of them.

Arch 635 is situated in the arches underneath the railway lines and produces a charming yet modern interior. The long bar provides some impressive artwork and leads towards the back room where this particular gig took place. It is quite a large space; however the idea of the stage being in the corner was not quite to my tastes. The sound was pretty good and no doubt benefited from the natural shape of the building. I would recommend this place to anyone planning on drinking or seeing a gig in the area. In such close proximity to the nearest Tube station, it perfect for the start or end of your evening.

Now, to the music. This review is a little strange for me as it actually covers two days. I first encountered Avenge Vulture Attack in Brighton for an interview. Then, two weeks later, we arrive in Clapham for a gig much closer to home. In the glamorous surroundings of a park bench in Brighton – just off the Queens Road - we talked about influences, festivals and the current state of the music scene in the UK.

LifeArcade! (LA!): Thank you for joining us today. Let’s get started. How does playing in Brighton compare to other towns and cities across the country?

Ella (Lead Singer): Well this is our second time playing here. It has a nice crowd, a younger crowd too.

Drew (Guitar): It has a very relaxed vibe about the place too. Maybe it’s because they are on the seafront…

Joss (Bass): …Everybody is very accepting. No one here just stands at the back of a venue with their arms crossed. Everyone is up and enjoying themselves which is always good to see.

LA!: So with the relaxed atmosphere that Brighton brings, is there pressure when you go to a larger city like London?

Ella: In London you can be playing to a crowd of other bands and musicians whereas here you are playing to a crowd who just love their music.

Ben (Drums): There is a slightly different attitude in London. With it being the city that it is, there is bigger sense of competitiveness as you go around it.

Drew: It is a lot less saturated outside of London definitely, which is nice. It just feels a lot fresher when you are playing in other places.

LA!: You have played festivals across the country. How do you find a festival crowd differs from the gig environment?

Joss: Festival crowds seem to be more open…

Drew: …and more drunk! But they know that they are not there to just see one band. They are there to see their favourites obviously, but it also allows them the opportunity to experience new music.

LA!: Where would you say is your dream venue to play?

Ella: Madison Square Garden would be a dream.

Ben: Wembley would be nice!

Joss: It would have been nice to play at the Astoria but alas, that is no more.

Ella: We get surprised, because you can show up a smaller pub or bar and they have an amazing energy to them. The more random ones can be the better venues.

Drew: Personally I would like to play at the Thekla in Bristol. Mainly because it is on a boat!

LA!: What do you put your sound down to? Do you have any particular influences and are there any bands you would love to play alongside?

Joss: That is a tricky one to answer as we all have very different, varied tastes. The music we produce is a fine, eclectic blend so to find a band that we can compare ourselves to is a hard thing to do.

Ben: Because we are all into different things, when we come together we have to make sure we like it, which is a nice problem to have when making music.

Drew: Since our tastes are different we have learnt to converge together. We have gone through various different sounds in the past to get to where we are now.

LA!: That’s good to have a varied mix of influences. Are there any bands that you could agree on that you would like to play with?

Joss: I think Incubus is one band that we would all agree we would love to play with. They are different every time they come out with something new.

Ella: It would be nice to stand back and just see them play and how they go about their performance.

Drew: The Distillers are also one that we would all like to perform with.

Ella: We would have to go back in time, but it would still be nice!

Ben: A lot of it is also about energy as well. When you look at a band like The Distillers they are pretty frantic on stage. We are very passionate about the energy a band can bring to the live setting.

LA!: So do you prefer the live stage compared to the studio?

Ella: I adore both. You get into a strange mindset in the studio because there is an element of having to get it right when you are in there.

Joss: I think we have different mindsets for both. In the studio we are perfectionists compared to playing live, where we are a bit more rough and ready.  

LA!: Playing around the country, how do you see the state of the music scene in the UK?

Ella: We have seen lots of great bands when we have travelled. Wherever we go there is always a good mix of music.

Drew: There is always going to be new, exciting music but there is also going to be stuff that is stale, so it comes down to how you choose to perceive it.

Joss: The different approaches are also interesting too. There are so many bands doing things in various ways. Not everyone’s first and sole intention is to get signed. They have their own ways of getting noticed and that is fascinating to see.

LA!: And finally, what does the future hold for Avenge Vulture Attack?

Joss: World domination and rock stardom.

Ella: We would like to record again before venturing further out with our touring.

Drew: We want to tour more. Europe is on the agenda, coming from the UK it is important for us to get heard out there. It is strange that there seems to be a cultural thing where they embrace a lot of UK music so it would be good to explore that.

Ben: Touring is a roundabout way of getting heard and increasing our exposure. At the point we are at it is something we have to do.

Drew: We will be writing some new songs too, which is always a fun experience.

Joss: At the end of the day this is what we want to do. We want this to be our job and this is what we have to do to achieve that.

Ella: I would like to do another, longer EP and take it step by step in that sense, to head towards an album in the future.

After being interviewed myself, we skip forward two weeks and I am now sat in the back room of Arch 635, lager in hand, enjoying some good live music. The first band I came across this evening was Toyships. I did not see much of them unfortunately but what I did see was impressive. Their cover of ‘Wonderwall’ went down very well and did not feel like a forced, awkward cover either. Their gritty rock sound suited the song well and it flowed to the point that you could sing along without losing touch in the tweaks they made to it.

Next up were First 2 Fire. This band produced a solid display, mixing heavy rock with a calmer melody to good effect. This was reflected in the set list and they managed to balance it well. They got a good reaction from the crowd and had people on their feet at the back of the room. The voice of the lead singer was well suited to this type of music and you could clearly see influences from such bands as Rise Against and Atreyu. Not bad bands to be influenced by at all. Their 25 minute set was enjoyable and the tempo did not allow you stray from their attention. One criticism I would make is that they were a bit static on stage. However this did not detract from the set and overall they put on an entertaining slot.

The headliners of the night were of course our featured band Avenge Vulture Attack. Having felt like a groupie the last couple of weeks I was on the edge of my seat as they began their set. And I was not disappointed. The sheer energy of this band could have powered the venue, as well as the train lines above us, as they burst into their first song with the enthusiasm that makes you feel that they treat each gig as their last. Their stage presence was the strongest of the night by far with each band member’s individuality shining through to create a lively and energetic visual experience. Their previous statements about The Distillers were certainly ringing true.

The lead singer led by example. Her loud vocals were effeminate and strong as was her presence on stage. She was commanding and brought the audience into the performance rather than simply performing at them. This exuberance was echoed by the rest of the band. The bass was prominent which is always nice to see and hear. Sometimes the bass can be lost in a live environment – but not here. Though not in the same genre there were comparisons I felt between himself and Rob Trujillo, in the performance aspect certainly but also in the style of play and the ability to get the best out of the bass. The guitar was also impressive and varied well between technical and more rhythm based play. It sounded similar to the sound The White Stripes create when they are in the rhythm section of a song. The drumming also stood out for me. Once more I am perhaps being bias as I play them now and again myself, but the pace was always on point and the transition from standard beat to solo-esque playing was spot on. The constant fast pace of the drums was also impressive from an audience standpoint - Keeping up that tempo throughout left me flabbergasted.

I had to agree with what they said in our interview in Brighton. It is very hard to pin point a direct comparison with any other band, such was the variation in sound. For every arch in the room, you could fill it with a different genre that would just come out at you at any given moment. As I left Arch 635 this night, with my ears humming for the first time in a long time, I certainly felt like I got my fix of pure energy and good old fashioned rock music – with an eclectic twist.

With more touring coming up and another potential EP in the future, there is no reason that a few years down the line, north west London will be hearing another ‘Hello Wembley!’ bellowing from its famous stage.

Check out Avenge Vulture Attack at www.myspace.com/avengevultureattack and www.facebook.com/avengevultureattack for music and upcoming tour dates.

Words by William Evans