Frigid Digits/At The Space Jam/Trip Hazard & The Rude Boys/
House Arrest/The Latch Key Kids
YaYa’s
Saturday, September 25, 2014
It was well worth going to YaYa’s early as Frigid Digits exploded onto the stage with their set. They had an aggressive approach and bared a mixed repertoire of thrashy ska and hardcore punk. With abrasive vocals and overdriven power chords, they struck up immense energy to begin the night and they danced and head-banged through their entire setlist with utmost enthusiasm.
Second on the stage, At The Space Jam mixed up the mood with their fun ska-style tunes. They were impressively well synchronised, utilising tempo changes and breaks in their songs with precision. The singer used a synthesiser to add some trumpet sounds to the music which fit right in with their overall style, and otherwise he was dancing in the crowd while the band continued with their catchy reggae. The band members swapped their instruments with one another for their last song, which in turn sounded a little sloppy but was quite enjoyable regardless.
Trip Hazard And The Rude Boys used groovy walking bass lines, thrashy, swinging beats and old-school punk guitar riffs, sounding much like a ska inspired innovation of The Cure. Their rock-like style remained pretty solid through their setlist, apart from an entertaining rap interlude improvised by the drummer. They also pulled off some really nice harmonies in their songs, regardless of the intensity of their music.
Whipping out a trumpet and retaining the ska-punk theme, House Arrest put on an enthusiastic performance which blared louder and louder as they became more dynamic. While a mild interruption occurred due to a broken guitar string, the band resorted to playing a cover song while it was fixed. They then recovered quickly and delved back into intense ska-punk; yelling the vocals and incorporating jammy instrumental breaks into their set.
The Latch Key Kids came in with their funky swing beats, catchy guitar riffs and good vocal harmonies. Keeping close to their musical style, they played a cover of The Boys Light Up by Australian Crawl, before changing from fast-paced rock to slower tempo-ed jams for a more laid back groove. This gave room for more flexible vocals sounding similar to that of Maroon 5, but with deeper vocal harmonies added to compliment it.
You know it’s going to be a great performance when the band members all take their shirts off before they even start playing. Them SHARKS kept the good tunes coming, with really interesting drum beats and catchy lyrics. Just when you think their song has changed from ska to punk rock, it would circle back around to ska and continue on its way. There were also cool guitar techniques used, such as repeated riffs and muted chords, enabling the bass guitar to drive the song forward. The performance was very lively with the bassist going for a crowd surf, followed by audience members getting up and dancing on the stage, including a shark mascot.
ASHLEIGH BYRNE
