Mono & Alcest @ The Brudenell Social Club | 13/11/2016
The first band started as we were queueing outside waiting to get in. A rare occurrence at the Brudenell Social Club, but one that signified the hectic night that would come of a double headline show with a support act. I have never seen the resident sound guy rush around so much, but despite some technical faults delaying Alcest for quite a while, they managed to pull it off with some extra help from the bands' dedicated roadies.This will be my second time seeing Mono and both times I've been surprised at the choice of bands being put on alongside them. They seem to be entering “the metal scene” a place which I would normally try to avoid like the plague due to the terrible band names and even worse band logos...oh, and the insufferable metal heads I've come across at Huddersfield University who throw a hissy fit if you say you just don't like metal that much. In terms of band names, this time I was pleasantly surprised. In terms of the music, I was even more pleasantly surprised!
Support: Sinistro | Origin: Portugal | Genres: Metal
The first thing that struck me about Sinistro was the overwhelming stage presence of their singer. With movements reminiscent of the clockwork doll scene in the film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, singing long, drawn out improvisational melodies and vocal noises, her part brought the most to the music and the performance overall. (It's unfortunate that vocals could barely be heard over the volume of the guitars, something which was a problem for Alcest too.) The stage presence of the other members was entirely overwhelmed, though for me this may have more to do with what they were playing than their performance.
Two guitarists took the left and right of the stage but the one you heard will have been the one you were closest to. This is because 90% of the time the two guitarists were playing the exact same thing, both completely drenched in distortion. This is a pointless exercise on its own but when the guitarist nearer to me decided it was time for a change, it would always be the same predictable formulae of letting the second guitarists carry on with the chords while he played a very simple repeating phrase which usually lasted either 4 or 8 beats.
Dynamically the band had an incredible amount of potential to experiment. One section in particular with a marching rhythm on the snare was dying to be eased in to a slow crescendo. What the band opted for every time though, was something most metal bands do: (and one of the main reasons I don't like metal) each member would either play at their loudest volume or not play at all. So basically: no distorted guitars = soft bit / distorted guitars = loud bit.
This reduction of song structure always makes songs feel samey despite their differences. It also affects the sound, because chords cannot be distinguished amidst the distortion of the guitars & drums wash over everything because every hit is the hardest hit. Couple that with a distorted bass with heavy low-end presence and you have a very muddy sound and songs which on the face of it seem very dynamic...but when you think about it it's actually quite the opposite.
Despite the negatives, I enjoyed Sinistro because I feel like with a few tiny changes they could be 10 times better.
Headline 1: Alcest | Origin: France Genres: Metal
Rather than opt for low-end muddiness, Alcest's sound was far more ethereal, it seemed higher and clearer, though their heavier moments had just as much impact, even the bass had a clarity to it (well, the bassist was using an ampeg amp, can that be considered cheating because it sounds so good?) The members played much more to each other rather than staying in their own world, I felt there was a bit more room for interlocking bass and drum parts though.
This would have been great because the drums really were the highlight of Alcest & here's why...Whilst the song structures fell in to many of the same traps that Sinistro did, again taking away dynamics by having a playing/not playing approach, many sections had increasingly complex drum patterns which brought a gradual density and cohesion to the sound. The drummer made perfect use of unexpected off-beat hits and ghost notes which steadily came in to focus. Alcest also made great use of time signature changes which were sometimes a suitable substitute for the lack of melodic content in their songs....
Yes, Alcest did some very similar things to Sinistro with melody, specifically regarding very short repeated phrases on the guitar and though it was nowhere near as often, the two guitarists did play the exact same parts many times throughout the set. There were some nice vocal melodies scattered throughout the songs (though Alcest are primarily instrumental) backed up by some great harmonies too. It's a shame these were not brought to the forefront a bit more during the more toned down moments of the set.
One last thing to mention is how they chose to stand on stage. A diamond shape with the “lead singer” right at the front centre stage. He completely obscured the view of the drummer and towered above the front row of the audience which weirdly enough, felt very claustrophobic to me coupled with the intensity of their music. Although I enjoyed each of their tracks individually, by the end of the 4th or 5th song, I felt it was a good time to end the set....then I looked at their setlist beneath their feet and realised they were only half way through!
Headline 2: Mono | Origin: Japan | Genres: Post-Rock
It's going to be very hard for me to review this performance because (and I'll get this out-of-the-way right now) it was almost perfect in just about every conceivable way. The drummer Yasunori Takada dropped his sticks once, members glanced nervously at guitarist Takaakira Goto as he struggled to hear the glockenspiel and sped out of time in the final song but none of that mattered. They corrected themselves immediately and if I hadn't been watching each member so intently, I probably wouldn't have noticed these things in the first place.
Mono played a surprisingly wide array of material from their 4 most recent albums dating back to 2009's Hymn To The Immortal Wind. Starting the set with my personal favourite 'Ashes in the Snow.' This song starts very quietly with a glockenspiel duet and usually when these kinds of sections are played at gigs in Leeds this is the time when the audience can forget they are listening to a band and begin a full-blown conversation about their last drunken night out...Strangely enough, this never happened whilst Mono were playing, the audience were truly captivated throughout which I was very grateful for.
These quiet sections are where Taka Goto's masterful guitar playing really shines through! I have never seen such a dynamically charged guitarist, his tremolo centric style is truly unique and the array of guitar tones he can produce is really something that must be experienced in this live setting. His entire performance seems like one constantly evolving melody.
Part of the genius of Mono's sound is that the other guitarist, Hideki "Yoda" Suematsu, is the most subtle member but just as important as Goto. Everything Yoda plays is an underlying textural and harmonic compliment to Goto's intense melody making. Very rarely will either of these guitarists be playing block chords, usually opting instead for a dense concoction of counter melodies which fills out the sound and gives the listener something new to focus on with each new section or even upon repeated listening of their songs.
Bassist Tamaki Kunishi probably brings the most stage presence to the table. While the two guitarists sit on stools at either side of the stage she stands to one side of the drum kit, playing very thoughtfully (almost as if she were playing a harp) in the quieter bits of the songs. Once things ramp up though she will sway energetically in time with the music. In parts such as the end of Requiem For Hell, she was really going for it, strumming chords with what seemed like all 4 strings of the bass.
Drummer Takada brings much-needed structure to the long build ups of these post-rock epics. Especially in tracks like 'Pure As Snow (Trails Of The Winter Storm)' where the sudden changes to double time and back again really help break up the song and give the impression of constant movement. In the two tracks from the new album 'Death In Rebirth' & title track 'Requiem For Hell,' Takada took the helm as the real driving force behind these songs. Taking an entirely unorthodox approach with the final movement of 'Requiem For Hell' with a constant repeating drum fill that lasts about 7 minutes. It's purposefully hectic and this 17 minute track was a perfect end to a set that blew everyone away from start to finish.
On record, Mono are one of my favourite bands. In a live setting, they are the best instrumental post-rock band I have ever seen. Though I was expecting more songs from the new album it's hard to complain when the band essentially decided to play all of their best songs from their best albums. Mono's songwriting has continued to evolve with these past 4 albums but alongside that, their live show is its own beast really and truly something to behold...and yes Taka-san, you will definitely see me again next year!