Ever since their first appearance on U.S. shores back in January, I’d been reading about how great THE JOY FORMIDABLE are live and that they’re a can’t miss live act. Although I’ve been enjoying their EP A Balloon Called Moaning and the live LP First You Have to Get Mad for a few months now, watching The Joy Formidable perform was like being in the eye of a hurricane. In other words, they live up to the hype and then some.
Starting with a wave of feedback which gradually led into opener “The Greatest Light is the Greatest Shade”, The Joy Formidable proceeded to just completely slay me and most of the rest of the audience for the duration of their 45 minute set, leaving all of us panting and wanting more when they didn’t come back out for an encore. Still, it’s no surprise that there was no encore on this evening, as this was a demolition derby comparable to the late JAY REATARD‘s live performances or even the short-lived Memphis hardcore punk band COPOUT, who I once saw put on an absolutely unbelievable performance in a sweaty shed in the summer of 1994 and have never forgotten since that time. It’s fitting that though singer/guitarist RITZY BRYAN looks and sometimes sings and plays like a blonde MIKI BERENYI and that on occasion their melodies remind me more than a little of THE BREEDERS, in terms of live intensity, their closest relatives are punk, hardcore and metal bands. Truthfully, I don’t think they could play that intensely for more than their allotted 45 minutes, but as I said before, it’s always better to leave the crowd wanting more than to bore them into submission.
Bass player RHYDIANN DAFYDD DAVIES sounds as heavy and distorted as STEVE ALBINI or others of his ilk and drummer (and RUSSELL BRAND look-a-like) MATT THOMAS is like a lethal weapon, the closest thing we’ll probably get to seeing DAVE GROHL in 1991. Simply put, he was astonishing.
Seeing openers THE DIG was almost like watching two different bands at once. Some of their songs betray the influence of early ’00s NYC indie darlings THE STROKES and THE WALKMEN, but yet others aspire to heaviness of early ’90s stalwarts like HELMET or perhaps even QUICKSAND. Furthermore, on some tracks, keyboards are prominent while on others they were barely audible. If they had more memorable material, I would’ve liked them more, though they’re weren’t bad at all. Furthermore, I can’t really complain about their set as they did an adequate job warming the crowd up for the headliners.
