Carnival is pulling off some great gigs lately. This time they’ve even hired in a PA system and sound engineer as they want the sound for tonights bands to be as goods possible. Its a weird place, a metal roof and walls, a small vocal PA and let the bands use their backline and the sound is normally perfect agains those odds. Tonight though Heavy Salad and Silent-K are in t he house (the second time recently for the Salads) and they want something better than normal.
The gamble pays off and the guest opener who I’m told are called Woo but have yet to find any info on them, benefit greatly from an experienced guy and a good system. They are young and yet musically seem like they know what they are about. A sparse almost Joy Division sound with moment of punky guitar that doesn’t overwhelm.
Then Heavy Salad are on. From this point we are all circling the maelstrom of their sound and clinging on to the life raft of our sanity in the hopes that we don’t drown in their music. Heavy Salad are a musical Titanic but they know how to miss that iceberg and keep the part going. Random noises, weird Zappa-isms and any one else thats not conformist musically form their sonic background but onto pop that is something akin to a big Motown band - but without being a big Motown band but, but, yeah, Heavy Salad are that conundrum of a band. They shouldn’t even exist by rights with their multiple layers of instruments, great melodies and good time attitude and the Priestesses, a trio of backing singers that fill out their sound whilst driving glasses of gin. Super cool.
Silent-K are angrier sounding, there’sTalking Heads in there, acetylene guitar riffs burning from their amps backed by some cool drums and bouncing along bass. It’s up tempo, song oriented and very dynamic stuff. They groove along in an angle sharp way with sudden burns of guitar held together by solid drums and bass and an understanding of the songwriters craft.
Words: Richie Yates, Photos: Richie Yates/Adrian Wharton
Links
Woo: Can anyone help here, any info on this band?
Heavy Salad Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heavysaladsounds
Silent-K Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thisissilentk