As promised I have wrote a little review about the gig I went to last Wednesday (14th October) in my hometown. In this I’m not going to talk about individual songs but more the actual performances. The reason I went to this gig was to support my friends, but it was also the tour date for Skywalker (yes my friends supported Skywalker). This was a bit of a win for me, not only did I get to watch my friends perform and support them but I got to see Skies in Motion and Skywalker! What more could you want then to see good bands with your friends ay!
When I arrived there was a band called Hell and Home playing, but unfortunately I didn’t catch a lot of their set but what I heard had some potential. The second performance of the night was that of This Memory. I know a couple of these lads so I may be a bit biased here, but they did good! As always guitarists and lead vocalist were heavy movers around the stage bringing visual performance to their set. Performance wise musically is always good, in time and to a high standard. Can definitely tell this isn’t a “hobby” which some may presume with their age. Vocals range from screaming to singing and feature different members of the band, all of which are talented. Guitars including bass are clean and sharp, and interaction with the audience was good as it also included involving them with some of the lead vocalists movement within the performance.
Third to play were Sextapes. The majority of this band are my nearest and dearest friends, I’ve known them for years! So prepare for some biased views (I can’t help it they’re great lads). Sextapes have a vibe similar to that of Enter Shikari with that their lyrics aren’t always sung/screamed. Vocalist is a bit of a joker so communication with the audience can be entertaining too. Something that really stood out to me was the professionalism they all had, their was a mishap in that a strap on a guitar couldn’t be reattached as their was a broken item on the actual guitar (technical term is unknown to me I apologise) but the guitarist continued to play the set sat down to ensure there was no interference with the overall performance. The set continued with everyone being very unaffected by this lack of strap.
Thirdly, Skies in Motion stepped up and performed their set. They’re sound is good! Stage presence is such a key item with this performance as lead vocalists was moving around and interacting with the audience in this intimate setting (The Rainbow basement is a small room without an official stage). Guitarists were moving around, jumping and even dancing throughout the whole set. Their music is just as good! Clean, in time, well put together and performed, which always makes music that bit better. I think it would be intriguing to see a longer set and see what they can bring when they’re in a larger venue. Something one of my friends I went to the gig with picked up was the use of strobe lighting. Strobe lighting can always add something to a performance but what she found worked well was the way jumps were timed to the strobe so it created a more intense visual than that of just using a strobe or not having any lighting at all. What I find great about the use of strobe lighting is when a performance includes heavy head movement it just works so well with the strobe and makes it different to the head bang you normally see. Skies in Motions use of the strobe lighting was clever and tactful, we enjoyed. And finally, the last performance was that of the headline act Skywalker.
Skywalker’s performance truly finished the night off. A well put together performance including good interaction with the audience, it wasn’t just chit chat it included important beliefs and opinions. These lads are passionate and that radiates though their music and performance. Stage presence was amazing, not one member of the band was still and all genuinely seemed to be enjoying themselves. What I loved about this performance was it didn’t feel rehearsed, it felt fresh and raw. Sometimes, especially larger gigs, a performance can feel over rehearsed and you can tell that they do the set over and over as its perfectly timed to the second and sometimes band members can even look bored. This certainly wasn’t a vibe given off by Skywalker. From what I hear too these lads are super nice and real down to earth, which are such good qualities to have as a person anyway but even better when you’re in a band.
Music n What Not 