MONAKIS + CITY DOG + HOTWAX – GREEN DOOR STORE, BRIGHTON 14.10.22
Monakis are a Brighton band on the rise. Inhabiting the noisier and punkier end of the post-punk spectrum, their lively and extremely energetic performances have built a growing and enthusiastic following on the south coast and beyond. Recent successful forays into London and Birmingham hint at broader horizons to come, and we are told that tonight’s headline at The Green Door Store will be the last hometown show for a while. They’ve only gone and sold it out too, which must be immensely satisfying and a source of great pride.
The Brighton and Hove News team has been championing the exploits of Monakis for a couple of years now, and we have reviewed them extensively. We were hardly going to miss out on this moment of triumph though. In fact, we’ve seen and reviewed all of tonight’s acts before, most recently at the excellent ‘2 3 4 Fest‘ at this very venue just a few weeks ago. On the basis of previous form, this bill promises a very entertaining evening indeed.
In case you’re not familiar, The Green Door Store is part of a former goods yard situated under the arches of Brighton railway station. It retains its original uneven floor of stone setts (brick-shaped cobbles), so if you’re planning any stage diving or crowd surfing you’ll be needing someone to catch you. The capacity for live music events is 170, and like many venues it runs club nights afterwards, so the bands finish early enough to make use of that proximity to the station, if nightclubbing isn’t your thing.
First up tonight are Hastings-based three-piece HotWax. In a nutshell, they are very young, very busy, and very good indeed, with stunning levels of musicianship and creativity honed during their extensive gigging. They are not an easy band to categorise, utilising an inventive mix of guitar-based styles. There’s a bit of grunge, a bit of prog, a bit of psych, and some riot-grrrl attitude for good measure. Tallulah is on lead vocals, the tone varying from confessional to disdainful to frenziedly impassioned. Her adroit guitar work, on a black Jaguar, ranges freely from growl to twang to banshee wail. Lola’s fingers skitter up and down the fretboard of her Rickenbacker bass, with flurries of notes high up the neck and an extensive arsenal of sounds available via her pedalboard. Behind the kit, drummer Alfie is fast, fluid and bang-on tight.
Opener ‘Octonauts’ goes from an insistent chug to a heavy stomp, before morphing into a proggy end section. I close my eyes briefly, and it sounds like Radiohead, at least until Tallulah unleashes a blood-curdling scream. The second number is introduced as ‘The New One’ and features some lovely riffing and an absolutely glorious breakdown of synth bass, before a playout of manic intensity. Punky guitar introduces the bouncy rhythm of ‘When We’re Dead’, and of course there’s superb lead work and a big build heralded by an unfeasibly long and breathtakingly fast snare roll.
The languidly off-beat intro of ‘1,000 Times’ ushers in restrained verses that alternate with busier sections. Tallulah and Lola take turns to solo, the jittering guitar rapidly ascending to dog-whistle pitch, and the rippling bass notes tumbling so gorgeously that I’m almost forced to leave to go home and practise. The band make good use of loud and quiet contrasts in the bass-led ‘Drop’ and the excellent ‘Barbie (Not Yours)’, whose angular riffing explodes into a chorus of fury. They conclude with ‘Rip It Out’. A quietly menacing snarl over bouncing bass octaves builds to a crescendo of venomous screaming.
I’ve seen HotWax play many times, and they seem to get more impressive on every occasion. It’s hard to see them not achieving a successful career in music, if they want it. If you haven’t come across them yet, rest assured it won’t be long before you do.
HotWax:
Tallulah Sim-Savage – guitar, vocals
Lola Sam – bass, vocals
Alfie Sayers – drums
HotWax setlist:
‘Octonauts’
‘The New Song’
‘When We’re Dead’
‘1000 Times’
‘Drop’
‘Barbie (Not Yours)’
‘Rip It Out’
Next on the schedule are City Dog, another young three-piece from the local area. This is the first time I’ve seen them and I’ve heard good things. They don’t disappoint. First number ‘Overflow’ starts with some beautiful riffing on an usual scale that sounds faintly middle-eastern, before thumping and crashing towards a high velocity conclusion. Deri is on lead vocals, and wrangles a deliciously staccato guitar solo from his Fender Mustang. Jack grinds an Ibanez bass, and with his long curly blond hair looks like he’s stepped out of a Renaissance painting. The tumultuous storm brewing behind the kit is due to the fast and powerful stick work of Keelan, all thundering toms and triplet rolls, and big hits that start from altitude.
‘Never Enough’ has more of a classic rock feel, with a solo to match. This band also has a song called ‘New One’, joltingly powerful with an awkward rhythm. Previous single ‘The Tide’ is propelled by some seriously energetic drumming. If I close my eyes it could almost be Motörhead, though a more contemporary sounding section of post-punk guitar soon snaps me back to the present moment. During ‘Who Do You Know’, a serious mosh gets underway in the crowd, and at this stage there’s just enough space left for the dancers to build up momentum on the way to their next collision.
I’m hugely impressed by the growling threat of current single ‘Deadman’, and equally impressed that Deri has kept his coat on, as things are warming up considerably. The band’s attire seems like a microcosm of the British public’s mixed approach to changing seasons: Deri bundled up in outerwear, Jack in a vest, and the lean and wiry Keelan shirtless by this point. The brisk and choppy rhythm of ‘Mind Eraser’ is soundtracking a game of human pinball in the crowd. Some participants are skittled over, but there are plenty of willing hands to right them again, and this continues through the jolting ‘Happy Silver’, that concludes an excellent set.
City Dog:
Deri Bovaird – guitar, vocals
Jack Dewdney – bass
Keelan Shepard – drums
City Dog setlist:
‘Overflow’
‘Never Enough’
‘New One’
‘The Tide’
‘Who Do You Know’
‘Deadman’
‘Mind Eraser’
‘Happy Silver’
It’s suddenly got very crowded in the live room, and it’s time for the headline act of the evening, local heroes Monakis. There’s a recorded intro of ‘Stuck In The Middle With You’, and the frontline players James and Aaron are regaling the crowd with their best and funniest sexy dancing. Drummer Joe is missing for the moment, but emerges at the back of the room to a huge cheer, and wriggles his way through the tightly packed crowd to jump onstage. His moustache has gone the full John Bonham, which I rather like. James actually has his shirt on tonight, a rather stylish crew-necked Fred Perry, and straps on his trademark Jazz Bass with a fancy gold scatchplate. Guitarist Aaron is slinging an Epiphone SG, and he and Joe are both sensibly clad in black vests.
After a dramatic opening of huge clanging chords that seem to signal impending Armageddon, we’re plunged into the urgent and dramatic riffing of ‘Punished’. Predictably enough the crowd goes crazy. A circle pit opens up during the second number ‘War’. The riffing is a monstrously deep chug of brooding menace. “This means war!” screams James, and the briefly opened eye of the storm is engulfed by a surge of flailing humanity.
“I want to thank every f*cking one of you here tonight,” the frontman yells, in a tone that suggests he means it. “…This is the most monumental moment of our f*cking career.” Things get pretty lively in the mosh during the rapid and insistent ‘Fake News’, and there’s a moment of beauty in Aaron’s descending guitar line during the bridge. The repeated vocal motif of “Respect Yourself” is a powerfully expressed exhortation to self-care.
You’ve got to have some front to write a song called ‘Long Tall Sally’, and Monakis certainly do. It’s a slight departure, with a flanged guitar conjuring the vibe of bands like The Cure, which is what “post-punk” sounded like when I was a lad. The more manic ‘Screw Loose’ is the signal to commence the Brighton crowd surfing championships, and there are some spectacular entries, including Alfie from HotWax, who sails past my head at one point. First prize goes to Ollie Horner, recognisable from the band SNAYX, who glides effortlessly across the outstretched hands, pointing at the band and engaging them with his famously snaky stare.
A sea of cigarette lighters atmospherically illuminates the relative calm of ‘Aaron’s Song’, although we’re back to full tilt with set closer ‘White Rabbit’. You need a fair bit of front to write a song called ‘White Rabbit’, come to think of it. The rhythmic lilt and screaming vocal are punctuated by delicious string-bending wails of lead. It ascends to a big climax, acknowledged by loud cheering at the end.
Will there be an encore? Of course there will. “We’re going to play two more f*cking songs for you,” James announces. The familiar two chord intro signifies that the first is my personal favourite, ‘Rich’. Fifty-nine years old or not, I’m off into the mosh, so there won’t be any more notes taken, I’m afraid. It’s a lot of fun ricocheting around in the maelstrom, and chanting along to the “Sort it out!” refrain. The kinetic mayhem continues through the final number of the evening, the awesomely powerful ‘DripTease’. A gloriously ascending guitar howl overlays the urgent rhythmic chug. “Do you want to fly?” “Only at the weekend,” goes the call-and-response dual vocal. Aaron wants to fly, or at least crowd surf, and he hurls himself in my general direction. My good deed for the day and contribution to the Brighton cultural community is intervening in time to stop his head hitting the stone floor. He is borne safely back to the stage to join in with a touching group hug.
It has been a hugely enjoyable evening, and an absolute triumph for the headliners. They’ll be moving on to bigger and better things very soon, I’ve no doubt. All tonight’s bands were seriously impressive, and it’s tremendously encouraging to see young bands emerging of such quality. Whatever else is happening in the world, the Brighton area music scene is vibrant and thriving. Get out and catch some gigs, when you can.
Monakis:
James Porter – bass, vocals
Aaron Butler – guitar, vocals
Joe Mctaggart – drums
Monakis setlist:
‘Punished’
‘War’
‘Fake News’
‘Long Tall Sally’
‘Screw Loose’
‘Ride’
‘Aaron’s Song’
‘White Rabbit’
(encore)
‘Rich’
‘DripTease’
