[this will end up more rant than review. no apologies.]

last night was one of those rare evenings where i was invited to join a couple of mates to catch a band that i don’t really know many songs by. i first heard of funeral for a friend in 2003 when i was looking for songs recommended by kerrang! on… err, iMesh, together with songs from other bands like seether and trapt, which were kinda big at that time. the first ever tune i listened to was juneau. heard a few other ones in the past year and i didn’t really listen to them that often since (too many songs from other bands, too little time. heh.).

back to the aforementioned pseudo-mathematical formula. that was what i felt during the gig. now, before you go on that i have grown old, pontificating on the music of the yoof of today, listen me out. by the time kids in glass houses got onstage, i felt like saying, “not another patrick stump/brendan urie sound-alike!!!”. okay, they don’t really sound like fall out boy but you get my point. one band does emo, sorry… post-hardcore, every other one sounds like that one band. i guess that is how the industry works. look at the various blink-182 clones that came out 5 years ago. and after franz ferdinand, every british indie band with names like the cribs, the pigeon detectives, the enemy and the lahabau would sell records, jangling away on their tele deluxes and selmer amps. it’s a bandwagon, why not just jump on it and enjoy the ride while it lasts.

nevertheless, it was a pleasant surprise to know that these guys are from wales. usually british bands don’t do american stuff well (think bush and lostprophets), as the home-grown stuff is way better and more groundbreaking (think radiohead). as we stood there catching the last two songs from city sleeps and watching the guitarist from kids ripping chords on his a grand-plus 52 reish tele whilst doing pete townshend leaps (showmanship goes a long way – no prizes for guessing which opening act stood out more last night), we knew we were in for a good evening of music. oh, ya. ramai wanita. pre-riot! hayley williams type some more. no photos, though, takut derang belum buat PMR lagi. hahaha.

the first song that i recognised immediately at the gig was rookie of the year. the crowd just went mental on this one. oh yes, to paraphrase kazman, this is a band kaya – both kris and darran play PRS. it was amusing to watch matt cuddling a toy snowman (thrown onstage by a fan) whilst doing a tune. they actually covered the white stripes’ seven nation army before seguing in to… nope, i don’t know. really. one thing for sure, they played juneau, the first ever funeral i’ve muat turun-ed. funeral had a new record out and as of last night, their current tales don’t tell themselves hadn’t reach my doorstep yet. so, didn’t really know which song was which last night!

on listening to the tales CD whist doing this entry, i find that their new stuff is more regular rock than typical screamo. the record has also taken a concept album slant, from what i can gather in the lyrics, the concept is pretty much marine-related. of the seaman persuasion (no master bates or roger, the cabin boy, here). after listening to it, i’m pretty sure they played the diary and all hands on deck. they ended the show with the poignant history, from their sophomore effort.

i guess watching them last night would probably make me choose. as in, if i had to pick a screamo… okay, post-hardcore band, i’d listen to these guys. at least they don’t sound like they are trying too hard. like good charlotte. wait, they aren’t even post-hardcore. harap rambut je one-sided floppy. should do more of this, checking out bands i don’t really listen to.

The Octagon, Sheffield 13.12.07 set: Roses for the Dead / The Diary / Rookie of the Year / Out of Reach / The Great Wide Open / 10:45 Amsterdam Conversations / Streetcar / She Drove Me to Daytime Television / All Hands on Deck Part 2: Open Water / Escape Artists Never Die / The Art of American Football / Walk Away / Red is the New Black / Juneau / [Encore] Oblivion / History