Crocodiles, The Cluny, Newcastle
- Written by Lee Hammond
Opening up tonight are Newcastle’s band for hire at the moment Them Things, we caught these guys a couple of weeks ago and again we aren’t blown away by their mediocre attempt at doing something different. Next up though were a band that weren’t on any line-up we’d seen in advance nor were they on any of the posters dotted around the venue with the set times on.
Gay were a real surprise. To say we were not expecting these Danish kids to invade the stage is an understatement, their opener was somewhat ramshackle with lead singer Thor mumbling his lyrics whilst breaking his guitar. There is a slight halt to proceedings as Thor fixes said guitar but they continue, and with some ferocity.
We’re really unsure of what to make of them - are they the best thing we’re ever going to see or are they utter rubbish, the jury remains out on that one.* Thor takes to the crowd for the closing track and perches on the seat right in front of me as he just groans into the microphone, it's quite an unnerving experience.
The lights dimmed as the eagerly anticipated Crocodiles storm the stage, opening with ‘Marquis De Sade’ and it's obvious they’re on top form this evening. Confessing that they’re trying out a heap of new songs, we settle in for what turns out to be a trip through an awesome sonic landscape, and they definitely seem to have found their groove; a hefty dose of reverb and wailing guitar lines underpinning this evening's set.
Brandon croons as the ladies swoon, and Charles shreds his guitar throughout. They provide scarce information about the promised new songs, all of which sound impeccable. We’re filled with excitement at the thought of a new album, though there’s a distinct lack of keyboards this evening and the guitars drive the new tracks. Older tracks do appear however, ‘Teardrop Guitar’ stands above the rest, the guitars ultimately consuming us.
As we’re transfixed on Brandon’s presence despite it being damp and wet Monday evening, to us it could be any day of the week as Crocodiles take us on a journey across a beautiful musical soundscape. As the last riff rings out its almost like an awakening as we fall back to reality, slightly saddened as we exit the venue back to the grim night skies and reflect on the brilliance we’ve just witnessed.
*Note: To clear one other thing up we’ve since investigated support band Gay a little more and on record they sound a lot better than they did live, leaving us to conclude that the jury is still firmly out!