Black Spiders
Arts Centre, Colchester
30 April 2010
Very heavy distortion, and a lot of feedback, introduced local stoner metal supremo’s and opening act Toom. Taking vocal control was drummer Jack Newnham, whose throaty snarl, conjoined with crunching riffs and a slower tempo, gave they impression that at any moment all power in the venue could be destroyed under the wait of the music. Their sound, reminiscent of bands such as Isis and Cult Of Luna, along with their performance, would work perfectly in a dingy basement setting. With a couple hundred people squashed from floor to ceiling these guys could really tear a place to pieces, it was as if the audience had been invited to the mother of all jamming sessions, one in which the band enjoyed as much as the crowd. One of the best opening acts to grace the Arts Centre stage, they set a very high standard right for the start of the evening; they came, they fed back, and they conquered!
The pounding bass of Toshi Ogwawa started Slave To Gravity’s set, with the mighty ‘Too Late’. The vocal harmonies of Ogwawa, singer Tommy Gleeson and guitarist Mark Verney synchronise the juxtapositions of serene singing and hard rock guitars. Gleeson’s vocals in particular echoed high into the old churches rafters, seemingly audible from any angle. Vocally, Gleeson’s sound reminds the listener of powerful rock voices like Chris Cornell and Josh Homme, and could possibly be one of the strongest on the rock scene right now. Mixing classic 90s rock and grunge to create a sound uniquely theirs, STG cast a wide musical net, with which it seems they could catch any audience. By the fourth song in, the fantastic ‘Misery Pills’, the crowd were captured, and loving every second, but no one more so then the Cheshire cat of drums, Jason Bowld. The band opened big and didn’t lose momentum; finishing with new song ‘Good Advice’ the band proved that they are one to keep a very close eye on.
Rock and roll fun and frolics were the central sphere to Black Spiders set and songs. Looking and sounding like the deep south collided with the Cotswolds, the band play with the motifs of heavy rock; whiskey, drugs and women, with a tongue firmly placed in a hairy cheek. At times the mosh pit looked so like a west country mud scrum, with numerous hairy man falling on their arses, that it was easy to imagine the band playing at a cider festival or demonic county fair. The humourous nature of the band lends itself to be accessible to any audience, it often seemed as if they were in fact a comedy band, ala Spinal Tap, which is in no way a negative thing. Fan favourite and hit of pure adrenaline, ‘Stay Down’, was the song of the evening, with speed riffing that inspired many a Guitar Hero move. This is was the bands first headlining tour, and if this show is anything to go by, it certainly won’t be their last.
Review by Emma Webb
