Headbanging On The 29 Bus

15 Minute City by Hygiene / Don’t Test The Pest by Pest Control

Bar my opportunity to catch Layback strutting their stuff in typically impressive fashion at the New Cross Inn back in mid-January, this year’s gig going has got off to a bit of a sluggish start.  So, it was with some excitement that I was looking forward to a double-header of a weekend, with two very contrasting bands.

First up, on the Friday night at New River Studios, was Hygiene. The band have a cracking new EP, 15 Minute City, under their belts and the title track opened up what was to prove a typically brilliant set.  Initially what strikes you though is, quite simply, the lack of distortion.  Now, don’t get me wrong, I love distortion and my listening is largely drenched in the stuff.  But there is also a delightful clarity that can be created by its absence. Every crack of the snare, every rumbling bass line, every wave of guitar, individually hits home.  You even think you can hear the pint arcing through the air after one of vocalist Guy Butterworth’s more extravagant dance moves, which, in the spirit of honest reporting, wasn’t all that extravagant.

Of course, one of the highlights of any Hygiene gig is the lyrics themselves.  The songs weave tales of daily London life with a rich sense of place and a keen eye for the small details that both enrich and frustrate us.  But they also develop a compelling narrative as to how those same daily lives have been hollowed out by forty years of skewed political priorities that have degraded public space, eroded social infrastructure, and further entrenched power imbalances.  All while getting you to sing along about their favourite bus route – the 29 down the Holloway Road since you ask.

I should also add how much I enjoyed openers Skinned.  Just shy of wall of distortion guitars, layered vocals that veered from the ethereal to the coldly detached, and all held together by some powerfully inventive drumming.  They bring Creepoid a little to mind in their shared desire to inject shoegaze with a healthy dose of aggressive discordance.

Hygiene are back at New River Studios on 15th March

Sunday night took me very much towards the other end of the musical spectrum with Pest Control hitting the Black Heart on the final date of their UK tour.  I must confess I’ve always had slightly mixed feelings about the Black Heart.  You can buy a decent pint, which is a plus, but the space itself has never quite seemed to work for reasons that I couldn’t quite put my finger on.  Over the years, I’ve seen some great performances there – from Dangers to Dawn Ray’d via Sect.  But crowd responses have always appeared a touch muted despite the excellence on stage.

From the off though, you sensed that this night would be rather different.  The show was sold out and there was a crackle of anticipation in the air, with the bludgeoning Demonstration of Power setting things up nicely.  By the time Pest Control hit the stage, the room was set to erupt and that is exactly what it did.  It was also a perfect example of the joys of a good crossover gig, which by their very essence breakdown the musical barriers that we all busily erect.  Air guitarists at the front of the stage matching the frenzied fretwork, before being subsumed under an old school hardcore pile-on.  The swirling headbanger amidst the sea of frenetic two-steppers.  An A-Z of T-shirts that literally range from Anthrax to Verse.  And when the slab-like riffs of set closer The Great Deceiver course through your body, the pleasures of brilliantly executed crossover are beyond debate.

And if you missed these two shows, you’ll get another chance very soon.  Pest Control are unleashed again this Friday at Damage Is Done 4 (there are still a few tickets available at the time of writing), while Hygiene return to New River Studios on Friday 15th March for the Zeropolis album release show.

Pest Control are back in action this Friday at Damage Is Done 4