Ratells/Glass Youth + others: Boardwalk

This is the third time I’ve seen the Ratells, and I guess the saying “third time lucky” seems to marry their performance perfectly. They have always been good, they just exceeded expectations. The crowd was animated, they were even moshing! As all this was occurring, I must’ve heard several: “they sound a lot like the Kooks.” Which I guess is kind of true, they are, after all, one of their main inspirations.

Their song “More than a Friend” off their first EP “Through the Cellar Door” certainly sounds like it could’ve come straight out of the “inside out” album. It’s good to hear that they’re turning away from this second hand sound with their new song ‘Snakes’ .Next up was Glass Youth. What first hit me was that front man and lead singer Sam is still cemented to that lone drum stick. Glad to see he has given the random orange lolly a miss though. It also seems, to me, that as soon as the band is on stage they grow down, into their child selves.

You must know that feeling; where you’re free to do what ever and you don’t care about what you look like or who’s saying what because you are having the best time ever? For them, this clearly occurs whilst onstage, I mean, why else would you feel the urge to scream “Rubber-duck-zilla” it makes their set all the more absorbing. Then, main support to the Elephant Keys, Alvarez kings started playing, and the floor immediately filled, and for good reason to. Their appearance is slightly vintage, with 1950’s semi acoustic Gibson’s and the reinvented skinny ties; yet, they play very innovative music.

With discordant riffs that oddly complement the smooth yet sudden changes in vocal notes that chant infectious lyrics that the crowd echoed, if not crooned, back to the band. In my opinion, the best band of the night. After that stimulating performance the Elephant keys had a lot to live up to and I don’t think they quite, well, ‘lived’? Not compared to the Alvarez Kings anyway. The songs themselves were very elevating, through mainly the buzz that the band gave off, with a thrashing and very talented keyboard player, an equally energetic bass and drum player and the front man, lead singer and guitar player Phil Goodwin scraping his palm over the frets and, well, going “silently” mental, in a good way though.

Nonetheless, in between songs, I could only grasp the odd word of what he was saying which was rather disappointing. At least the songs themselves made up for it. The Crowd was insane. Which leads me to say; thank you to everyone, in particular the Ratells for encouraging a very entertaining, slightly inappropriate and an over excited crown, and thanks to Elephant keys for squirting water…all over me? It was “appreciated.”

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