Live Review: Seething Akira w/Masquerader & The Pink Diamond Revue at The Lounge Bar, Alton!

Riding on the crest of a wave Seething Akira have a lot to be proud of with a sophomore album in “Cancel Estate” appearing just before them headlining “The Night Before Rabidfest” warm up at The Jericho Tavern in Oxford a week ago. Taking influence from Pitchshifter, The Prodigy and countless others the Portsmouth Electronic Nu-core are a six piece who know how to party with EDM, 90s break beats and Metal guitars adding to their grime infused vocals, their ridiculous energy levels setting them apart from the wolfpack. Throw in the fact that tonight is also Stone Soup guitarist Chris Gilday’s birthday and you know it’s going to be lively, a packed venue and a night of fun and frolics awaits…

As opening bands for Seething Akira go they don’t get much better than Masquerader [8/10] whose blend of Post Hardcore urgency, Math Rock groove and Dissonant electronics is just the tip of the iceberg. Imagine the combination of Head Automatica and Glassjaw at their most extreme and then take the guitars out, allowing the five string bass to do the damage with funky grooves that run deeper than Jägermeister as the drums pound. Their knob twiddling vocalist takes the opportunities to leap of stage and stalk the audience, which gives everything a wonderful chaotic edge. They refuse to pre-record his elements so each show is unique, dashing back to the stage to pull the next punch a regular occurrence. A sophomore EP on the way in “Closer To Death” and from that the three piece give us a couple of classy sounding new jams to tickle the tastebuds. What more could you possibly want?

An audio visual experience The Pink Diamond Revue [7/10] have an almost hypnotic trance inducing psychedelic quality to their sound. A two piece of live fuzz rock guitars electronic drum pads, they play to a backing track of warm industrial dance beats and vocal samples. A Mannequin stands beside them on stage as a projector runs through some 1970s exploitation movie style visuals to add another dimension to the performance. It comes across like Kraftwerk had a baby with a 1950’s Rock band in the mind of Beck with every song having an addictive listenable quality to it, in an LSD inspired way. “The Fuzz Guitar” and “At The Discotheque” stand out from the pack and it has to be said that the eclectic and eccentric vibes of the material would work incredibly well on a film soundtrack.

The main event is of course Seething Akira [10/10] who remain at the height of their powers armed with new cuts to chemically enhance their older ones. They’re undeniably addictive with their explosive, bombastic, defiant and intense approach, their never say die attitude one that commands admiration. The whole venue is turned into one giant bounce fest from the word go as “Punishment Instructions” calls for the middle fingers to be raised. As a six piece they genuinely don’t care that they’re playing a smaller venue and give it everything they’ve got, both barrels to bring Metal to the Masses and make tonight one to remember. The mosh pit goes crazy for cuts like “Something In The Water” while new cuts like “Ixnay” and “You Don’t Want None” confirm there is plenty more where they came from. Their energy is as infectious as their riffs with a few more muscular ones on the new album giving their attack a new dimension, the electronics a remaining a driving force. Social commentary boils underneath themes of anger, despair and defiance in all of their songs and both vocalists aren’t afraid to get in the pit to scream in a few faces and claim a few high fives in the process. If a dysfunctional wonderland is what it takes to inspire them then long may that be present because there isn’t a band quite like this one anywhere else, “Resilient” once again masterfully delivered. There’s even time for the venue to sing happy birthday in impromptu unplanned fashion as cake is passed out to the our six string loving friend. Seething Akira are a band to be celebrated and leaving the venue we wonder what America would make of a distinctly British institution…