Dananananaykroyd @ Scala, Kings Cross

29th October 2009: Dananananaykroyd, Dinosaur Pile-Up, Calories @ Scala, Kings Cross

Scala, could quite possibly be the best venue in London if it wasn’t for 2 things. A) bar prices are terrible £3.80 for a lager and B) the location of the bar/facilities are about a 5 minute march from the main arena. Having to ascend 4 flights of stairs and march 5 minutes every time I feel to need to visit the little boys room is not ideal in any one’s book!

Despite this the main arena is tiered within a very intimate space. Sound was good but that did not phase the first band this evening from putting on a show to forget.

Calories

Calories first and foremost should never ever be your band name! It’s right up there  with the terrible band names ever! Secondly they played simply indie music without any real outstanding instrumentation or emotive soul. Thirdly their singer could not hit the right note even if it jumped down his throat and tried to sing itself, some were truly shocking and hard to listen to. When they finally managed a collective harmony this greatly improved things which wasn’t at all bad. All too soon the failed x factor contestant vocals were back and i switched off again…time to get the walking boots on and trek to the bar.

I was expecting big things from Dinosaur Pile-Up and that’s exactly what we got. Grunge dies long ago and wasn’t noted for its happy tales. Put fun and grunge together into a pot and stir it with the big pop stick and you get their superb sound. High Volumes, energy, great vocals and riffs Cobain and co would have been proud of were the pivotal cornerstones of their set tonight. Summer Hit-Single is destined to be exactly this, its fantastic guitars and equally immediate vocals epitomised all that’s good with them. Each song was engraved in your brain after one chorus, your singing along by the second, you know all the words by the third, and your still humming them on the tube home!

Dinosaur Pile-Up

A Great set and with more fine tracks than a formula one season including the distinctly grunge Melanin, the punked up rock of Traynor and the pop buzz of Opposites Attract. Keep a close eye they will be selling out much bigger venues near you very soon, I’m sure!

Dananananaykroyd

Left reeling from Dinosaur Pile-Up we dived back in again for the ones we came here for Scotland’s comically titled Dananananaykroyd. With a name mixing Blues Brothers legend Dan Aykroyd and the batman heme tune you can only hope their music is as great as their name. I can declare it’s actually much better! Tight guitars each purposefully struck exactly where they need to be with technically complex riffs bordering on prog were instantly likable.

Dual singers were so you and full of energy with more than a few dodgy dance moves were the key to their performance. Each trading lines like blows in a world title fight each trying to outdo the other for vocal title belt. Could not understand a damn work but i really loved this dynamic twosome. Their energy was infectious as it swept over the crowd causing a lot more dodgy dancing and bustle in crowd central. I do not understand how some of the kids seem to be dancing as if they were being electrocuted, maybe I’m just not down with the youth of today.

The adolescent faced singer, the one not wearing a poncho, asked the crowd not to bash dance, and instead go for from on side of the room the other and hug each other. Yes you can tell this wend down like an indie kid at a death metal show, pushing shoving and disaster is all that followed…fun to watch though.

They played the majority of their debut album with standout moments coming from Pink Sabbath, Black Wax and Some Dresses. They played with maturity way beyond their years and with more exhilarating shows like this they are going big places, very soon!