Live Review: DUST/Knees Please/Methods @ Tachles Bar, Tel Aviv [25th February 2016]

Tonight sees me back at Tachles Bar to see 2 of my favourite Tel Aviv bands, Dust and Knees Please, and new band Methods.

Methods

 Methods are a pretty new Tel Aviv trio. Playing songs which flick in between styles, all three members are incredibly competent musicians. Although their first song, entitled "2", has quite a melodic punk feel with vocal harmony and a clean riff, their material in general tends to have a bit of Quicksand meets Prong vibe, which, I guess, essentially could be considered a "Helmet vibe".
 The songs in general tend to be very coherent and easy on the ear. Even the shouting is something your parents won't be too bothered by. Bassist Greg and guitarist Max gel together, both in terms of playing and their vocals. It might not necessarily be super pitch perfect harmonies all the time but they are in sync and give the same amount of energy. Drummer Vladi is one of those more professional drummers I tend to see often at shows like this. Not only is he listening through headphones but his actual technique and use of varying time signatures and drum patterns is impressive and possibly what makes them such an interesting new band. Some of the more dance/drum n bass beats he does gives everything a bit of a Therapy? feel. They seem to have that same sense of experimentation with mixing rock with electronica and are giving each in the right dosage.
 They seem to be in their very early stages, as the fact all their songs are currently numbers proves. This could be their thing a la Karma To Burn and other such bands but either way, it doesn't really matter. 1.1, the only track of theirs currently online, is a good example of what they do, although they definitely show their skills more in other songs. The crowd, both those familiar and unfamiliar with the song, were dancing a bit and nodding their heads. Actually, there was a fair bit of dancing throughout and they got quite a good crowd for an opening act.
  Methods seem to manage to mix the easy listening metal of bands like Helmet and Prong with the more technical musicianship of bands like Deftones and Tool and create something that actually sounds quite fresh.

4.5/5 

Knees Please

 I've written about Knees Please before, and I even got them to play my birthday show. Despite both band names that they have had over the past years, I still stand by the fact that they bring back a familiar sound of the more heavier, sludgy side to early grunge that makes me feel happy. Certainly seems to have the same effect on the crowd here tonight. They could just be drunk and/or stoned, but, hey, that's their people.

 The band play only three songs from their Where's Ma Money? debut and four currently unreleased tracks. I don't think it matters all that much to the crowd as many of them are either here to just jump around like crazy to anything or to just sit and stare at the band's two models. I haven't heard I Came Blood live for a while so it's nice to hear it tonight. It's a weird song lyrically, but has an awesome groove which many here appreciate. New song Barry The Lizard is a personal favourite of mine, being more funky and crazy than the others.
  Guitarist and vocalist Alex and drummer David are on great form as always, with David always managing to cover small mistakes with ease, such as losing a stick, continuing with one hand and quickly grabbing another stick. However, it is new bassist, Ben, not to be confused with the previous bassist also called Ben, who currently steals the show for me every time I see them. Not only is his playing on point, but he is ridiculously enthusiastic, charismatic and also joins in on vocals which shows has really stepped Knees Please up a notch. 

4/5

DUST

  DUST seem to have become my Tel Aviv version of Knuckledust. There used to be a time when Knuckledust were playing in London almost every week and I would go and see them. DUST seem to be constantly doing shows and I'm managing to catch them almost every time. To be honest, seeing and hearing pretty much the same set over and over again can be a tad tedious but it's lucky that they have some tunes that simply really get me pumped.
 From their intros alone, songs like their opening song Slipping Away and Numb get me moving and smiling. It's a little bit complicated to get fully into it tonight as the "floor" is filled, but I manage to get a bit of a boogie on. Everyone else starts push pitting and running about as each song gets going, and frontman Evya does his part to get involved. Newer songs like Plastic and typical set closer Sick and Tired are starting to become more recognisable at shows and I can't wait for them to come out in recorded form.
  The band are still super tight. It's obvious why Ofek was also taken on as the new Kids Insane guitarist; not just because they're friends but the boy has something. Not only can he play but he plays with a certain style and passion. I think he got even better since growing his hair...
  It's hard for me to get totally bored of DUST but this fan is desperate to hear new songs. NEWER songs. I wouldn't even mind a cover here and there. Just switch it up a bit!

5/5



All pics by David "Doh Doh" Rosen

Live Review: DUST/MooM/Rainbow Cobra @ Strauss, Jerusalem [7th January 2016]

  This is an absolute first for Punkalovich. Despite there being a few shows in Tel Aviv, including friends Almunim Metim, NEAT and Mondo Gecko, I have traveled to Jerusalem to the underground basement known as Strauss. Situated in the very Haredi area of Zichron Moshe/Geula in Jerusalem, this venue is the absolute opposite of its surrounding; a special place where punks come to enjoy cheap beer and noisy music. Tonight, it is the amazing DUST and MooM who have brought me over to the holy city. 

Rainbow Cobra

   Starting close to 11pm, first band Rainbow Cobra get under way. I was previously unfamiliar with the band but turns out that it is another band involving crazy Juan (Shchurdistan/Dilema/Bat Hayam HaKtana/etc..) on guitar/back up vocals and (South African) Rob (Marmara Streisand) on drums.
   With Eran on vocals and Daniella (ex-Mitan vocalist) on bass, the music is pretty much in the same lines as some of Juan's previous bands, playing pretty noisy crust. His guitar skills and evil vocals have always been the best things about everything he's been in and that stays the same with Rainbow Cobra. His riffs flip in between old school thrash and death metal, even sometimes throwing in some classic soloing. As impressive as that is, it tends to feel let down by Eran's vocals which are mostly repetitive shouting that don't always compliment the musical style. Things get more interesting when Juan and Eran do dual vocals. The songs come across more brutal and take me back to when dual vocals/2 vocalists was quite the trend in the late 90s/early 00s. Eran is at least quite a character to witness but his vocals alone just don't impress me.
  All round, there seemed to be a few mistakes here and there which they at least laughed off and flowed with, which is better and more professional than stopping and starting again. For someone who seems to have been drumming for a long time, Rob's drumming is still pretty minimal. When it comes to playing grooves, their effectiveness tends to get lost and fills in general come off as weak. But I guess this is what punk was always meant to be; energy over skill. Besides Juan's aforementioned talents, there still isn't really anything in the performance or the songs that make Rainbow Cobra really stand out.

2/5

MooM

  Ever since I first saw them some time back, I fell in love with MooM. They play a mixture of crusty powerviolence and sludge a la EYEHATEGOD. The EP (see review) is everything one hopes in an EP of this style; short with both fast parts and slow breakdowns and just extremely heavy. Whereas the EP, recorded originally as a demo, has a raw roughness about it, in a live setting with good enough sound, the band sound so tight that it's unbelievable.
  I didn't really make notes throughout the set because I just wanted to enjoy them. Although I've seen them before, this is the smallest setting I've seen them in and managed to get myself right in front of them. This is how MooM need to be viewed; right up close. Every single little movement every member of the band makes is an important and magical experience. The way Sima (vocals) screams with possibly even more gusto than she does in Not On Tour, Gad's (bass) antics as he vigorously plays and how his face goes all demonic as he growls, Ezra's (guitar) cool demeanour and Heshbon's (drums) flailing yet totally rhythmical arms all make MooM's live performance one of the most exciting I've ever seen. I found myself grinning from ear to ear and trying to stop myself from punching anyone or breaking anything. It might be difficult to tell songs apart at the moment but that will change with time.
 Obviously, this style is not everyone's taste, but being someone who appreciates the likes of EYEHATEGOD, DOOM and more beatdown bands like Xibalba, MooM give me the hit I need. They're basically the nearest thing Israel has to a beatdown and maybe even the nearest thing Israel has to a tight powerviolence band.

5/5

Side note: After MooM, I decided to go for a walk to try and find somewhere open to just buy a soft drink or something. Not only did I not find anything nearby open, but the streets were an absolute mess. The large trash cans had been set on fire and turned over with rubbish flying all over the place. There were fire engines and also quite a few police vans present. Turns out, this was a violent protest by the Haredi community in response to the death of a baby, allegedly shaken by a carer/nanny, whom the community did not wish to have an autopsy that the Jerusalem Magistrate's Court had ordered. It's all a bit crazy, but it's interesting to know that this sort of stuff happens over things like this.

DUST

  I have probably said this enough times on this blog, but I frickin' love DUST, I do. They may have been playing the same set of songs for quite some time, bar a few new ones which I still haven't quite gelled with yet, but luckily the majority are songs that I am more than happy to hear and go crazy to time and time again.
  The tracks from their first record, all of which they play tonight, still get me super pumped. Numb still has one of my favourite intros; melodic and a little tribal, giving it quite an epic feel, before smashing into hardcore groove and the shouting of "WAAAAKE THE FUCK UP!" As well as songs like Midas Touch, Slipping Away and PMA bringing out the hardcore kid in me, currently unreleased but already live staples such as Plastic, Role Model and the (usually) set closer Sick and Tired sound as awesome as ever, even in this tiny place. Once again, frontman Eyva was happy enough to let me do that final line of Sick and Tired. Don't really know how it sounded, but I always have fun shouting it. 
  Dust take after bands like John Coffey and even The Bronx, in some ways; having that hardcore energy and PMA but experimenting with more stoner rock-like riffs and grooves and different time signatures. Most hardcore in Israel is along the lines of straight up hardcore punk or border on metalcore with low toned "chugs", but DUST take all their influences and make hardcore that's a whole lot more interesting. 
   Ofek (guitar), Guy (bass) and Ran (drums) are all incredibly competent musicians and consistently tight. Evya does have a strong voice but he tends to do the same thing a lot. I'm only starting to notice this after about 2 years of seeing and listening to them. As much as I still like his vocals, I guess I would just love to hear him suddenly try some melody or use some more rhythmical/rap-like delivery. Unfortunately, he is also one of those many frontmen who will walk up and down looking at the floor for most part of the show. He does interact with the crowd at times, which is more than some, but it's maybe something that he and other vocalists (including myself) need to pay attention to. 
   A DUST debut album is meant to happen soon and I for one can't wait for it. Although some of the new stuff I hear in shows get a bit lost on me, I am interested in any other tracks they might have up their sleeves. 

5/5

Live Review: Hardcore Attack! @ Tachles Bar [Thursday 1st October 2015]

DUST

03 (Efes Shalosh)

Dam Al Zona

Sick Society

Tonight, I come to Tachles Bar in south Tel Aviv for a night of some of Israel's up and coming hardcore bands, including a band I haven't seen or even heard of before.

Sick Society

   First up is fairly new thrash influenced band, Sick Society. I've seen them at least a couple of times before but wasn't really into it. The last time that I remember was at the Zimmer and the whole set was a bit of a mess. Their drummer, Andrey, just wasn't on point; unable to keep tempo and sloppy fills which thus made everything sound very mediocre. By tonight's performance, the band has certainly done some hard work. Andrey's playing is tight, showcasing some impressive blast beats, and the sound over all is better than before.
 They might not be doing anything new but there are parts that make me nod my head and other parts that get a lot of the fans tonight going berserk. Songs like All Nazis Are Bastards and Black Penguin Society are more in the vein of simple street/crust punk, making them sound like many of the other Russian/Israeli bands out here. Other songs such as crowd favourite, The Slaughter, has a more crossover backbone and sounds especially impressive tonight.
  Guitarist, Johnny, plays some really old school style solos which, when he gets them perfect, fit really well and help them stand out a little bit more. Frontman, Alon, looking as thrash as possible, might not have anything unique about his vocal style or presence, but he loves the music and he loves the crowd. He shows that by crowd surfing, managing to return to the stage just in time to continue the song. He also brought a bit of fun to the party at the very beginning by wearing a Lucha Libre mask, but that quickly lost its charm, as it pretty much always does.
  My views on Sick Society have changed slightly and I definitely enjoyed them more tonight than before, they're just not interesting enough right now, although newer songs, The Dancing Monkey and "The Last Song", do show potential and progress.

3/5

Dam Al Zona

   Here's the band I'd never heard of before. Dam Al Zona (lit. Blood On A Whore), are a four piece from Tel Aviv who simply play some crazy shit. They look like they should be playing old school death metal but, instead, have that crust/early hardcore punk sound. The songs seem to be mostly in Hebrew, and due to live vocals for this sort of stuff being generally quite unclear, I couldn't tell you much about what they were talking about, but the songs are short, fast and chaotic.
  Frontman, Yuval, brings some hardcore punk ethos to the performance. He verges on the line of GG Allin, stripping off to his underwear, banging his head with the mic and even letting crowd members kick him and jump on him while he writhes about on the floor covered in (what I hope was) beer. Sometimes, the time keeping on the whole wasn't also kept in check, but it was certainly an energetic live performance worth seeing.

3/5

03

   I've written a bit about 03 (Efes Shalosh) before. They're one of those bands that I've grown to like more and more over time. Especially since taking on guitarist Lemmy (Sintax), the whole stage performance and even the sound are somehow both much tougher. 
   Frontman Jenia has always been consistent. He has sung for both Instinct and Brutal Assault (maybe even others) and his vocal style hasn't changed. Luckily, 03 are musically more metal than the previous bands and thus doesn't just sound like a carbon copy of either one of them. He moves about the floor space, trying to get crowd members riled up and ready to move, which always helps in a performance.  

  No Racism is currently the band's stand out track, with cool grooves and some great "chugs" in the middle. They have more songs in their set than before and the newer ones sound even tougher. Comparisons to bands like Terror and Death Before Dishonour are obvious, although I'm eagerly awaiting the band's upcoming album to hear what else they have to offer. 

4/5

DUST

   Dust! How many frickin' times have I seen Dust now? I can't even count. Over the last few months, I've must have seen them at least once a week (I just didn't bother writing about it.) Yet another band who are meant to be releasing an album soon, these guys and their mix of unconventional stoner time signatures and hardcore aggression just gets me every time. They still practically do the same set over and over again, which, for a band who has to have been around now for at least 2 years already, you'd think would have expanded a little bit more. There are some new songs, but they're harder to get into. I'm ok with odd time signatures but when a song doesn't really settle into a groove, it's hard to follow and enjoy it. That's the feeling I get with some of the newer songs. That being said, I can't wait to hear the new album. 

4.5/5

All photos by Sharon Ronen

Live Review: The Stubs/DUST/Left @ Koro, Tel Aviv [13th March 2015]

  Tonight, I come to Koro (yes...that place again. Tel Aviv's kind of small, you know..) for a bit of a mixed line-up show. This is the Tel Aviv leg of the Israel tour for Polish rocker The Stubs. From a few of the tracks I had previously checked out, these guys sounded fun and I wanted to check it out in person.

Left

   The show starts off with local duo Left. I am still unsure if I've actually seen these guys before or not but I had checked their bandcamp and liked what I heard. The duo consists of Asaf Leizerovitz on guitar and main vocals and Roy Chen on drums and extra vocals. Throughout the set, I realise I've seen the drummer before. His ambidexterity and flawless techniques made me think of the drummer of another duo, Verminn. Turns out...yeh, that's him. He also drums for quite a few other bands so this must be his life. All power to him!

   What you discover from both listening to and watching Left is that they mostly float somewhere in between stoner rock and full on garage rock anthems. Songs like tonight's set opener I Wanna Get To Know You, Ghost and Betterman lean more towards the stoner side of things. The former and the latter are more sultry and intense, with the former reminding me of QOTSA, with its "I wanna get to know you" refrain getting stuck in my head by the end of the song. Ghost is like a more haunting Led Zepplin with a "groovy" riff and pounding drums. Asaf's vocals are powerful and on point on all songs; at the same time, even quite endearing. The track called 7 (not a Prince cover) is not so much "stoner rock" but has more of a slight space-rock/horror punk feel about it, filled with high octane drumming and an intense riff. If you were running away from sort of hungry monster trying to take over your planet, this song would be a suitable soundtrack. 

   Tell Me, Matter of Control and Rogues in the House are where I hear the bands more garage rock influences. Tell Me is ridiculously catchy and, personally, is quite reminiscent of the BBC song from Austin Powers. Maybe that's just me! Matter of Control takes things to a more MC5/New York Dolls level, with wailing vocals and an intoxicating rhythm that had a few people dancing tonight. Rogues in the House is also very danceable with a hint of White Stripes about it...just with more interesting drumming.
  As well as proper songs, Left also have a few instrumentals, such as Power To The People and Headbanging which they play tonight. The former is quite techno/disco and had me nodding my head along up until it goes batshit crazy like a heavy dance track; the latter is a slow paced trippy number with an infectious riff and can definitely get you banging your head.  

  Asaf and Roy are great musicians. Roy's drumming is mesmerising and Asaf has some great riffs and a well tuned voice. I will add, however, that they do look quite mismatched as a band; Roy looks and plays like more of a metaller whereas Asaf has a "geek-chic" look about him. Fortunately, they work well together and I was very impressed. 
  See Left play with Shifka Chiefs at Levontin 7 on 21st March.
4/5

DUST

   How many times have I written about DUST already? This hard hitting and groove-led hardcore band just keep playing wherever and whenever they can. Playing songs off their self titled EP (such as the popular and catchy Midas Touch, Numb, with its epic sounding intro that always gets me pumped, the invigorating PMA, the amazing Slipping Away, the groovy Title and even the short blast of fury that is Brain Fuck Your Skull) as well as newer songs which are still familiar from previous shows (Bloody Knuckles and constant set closer Sick and Tired) all manage to get quite a few people in the crowd dancing and moving, despite it not being the biggest turn out I've seen for Dust before. 

Frontman Evya is not afraid to get amongst the viewers as the rest of the band full rock out on stage. As much as I love them, they need to start playing some "new-new" songs; songs we haven't heard several times before. That, and they should also release a proper album, like....NOW!

  You can see Dust play a lot of shows in the near future, I'm sure, including a Fanzine show at the Central Bus Station in Tel Aviv on election day.
4/5

The Stubs

  Now we come to the main event. It's always fun when an overseas band comes here. At the same time, it's a bit disappointing when they don't really get the right reception. I guess there is a good number of people here tonight for Polish band The Stubs, but it just doesn't feel like the normal crowd for a punk rock show. And these guys are pure punk rock and roll. 

  As the band starts, they don't have a full room straight away but slowly people started coming back in and all eyes were on them and lots of feet were moving. From the get go, with the Hellacopters-esque Nation Of Losers, we get the idea that this show is going to be full of hard rocking songs. The band are being quite energetic but I can imagine that touring takes the wind out of you as they could have smiled a bit more. 

  Their set basically continues along the garage rock/rock and roll kind of lines. Highlights of the set include the fast paced Straight and White which also has a nice change of pace in the middle, Salvation Twist with its "WOOHOO" chorus, Timmy with its cool wailing guitar intro that leads into groovy rock and roll, the riff laden and Rival Sons-esque There's No Mother and oldest song in the set, Highway Demon, which pretty much sounds like an angrier and heavier country song. During the set, guitarist and singer Tomek thanks us for coming and a little bit about themselves. Bless him, though...he seemed out of breath from all the rocking.

    Show closer Rudy's Blue Boogie, as the name suggests, has a bluesy riff quite reminiscent of Canned Heat's On The road Again...but punkier. But it might not have been enough as they left the some of crowd wanting more. I think we must have all been having fun as the set actually felt quite short. 

   If you like bands like MC5, Stooges, Hellacopters, Bombshell Rocks etc.. then The Stubs' back catalogue is definitely worth a listen.
4/5

Live Review: DUST/Lunamore/Woolly Boy @ Syrup, Haifa [23rd January 2015]

  This review is going to be quite brief but it should not diminish its' importance. Not only is this the first show in Haifa (north of Israel) that I am writing about but it is also my band's first ever show.

Woolly Boy

Obviously, I'm not going to rate my own my band. I will however say thanks to Sasha of hardcore04 for putting us on this show, thanks to the sound engineer and barman at Syrup and to all who came to watch us. For a first show, we just sort of went with it. We had a few mess ups due to not enough practices but I like to think the stuff we played well sounded good. Unfortunately no-one filmed us. 

Next time....

Lunamore

Lunamore are one of those bands who do that emotional, well orchestrated, experimental "screamo" type music that is quite popular. The young 3-piece, as always, gave a great performance. They set themselves up on stage as they would in rehearsal; they stand in a triangle facing one another. This is a good idea as they are able to still stay in communication with one another and in sync even while playing ever changing time signatures, dynamics and rhythm patterns. Lunamore are the type of band that you do not need to have listened to their stuff before to enjoy live. A good part of their set is mostly instrumental and moves from being beautiful to frantic within seconds. Yam explores his guitar pedals while Bar shows how varied his drumming repertoire is and Naama handles bass duties effortlessly. Having seen them live a few times before, there is the odd riff here and there that has me smiling and whirling my head around. I believe they have been in the studio working on something and I can't wait to hear that.

4/5

DUST

I simply love Dust. Not only do I love that they're really the only Israeli band playing this style of groove-lead hardcore and doing it right, I've gotten to know them a little bit better as people and they are great guys. As well as playing tracks off of their self titled ep (namely Midas Touch, Slipping Away, Numb and PMA), the band also plays some tracks that I recognise from other shows (such as the one including the "I'm tired of being sick and I'm sick of being tired" refrain) and some brand new songs. The band are tight, which is not easy when you're also switching time signatures within song. I hope these guys bring some new record out soon and start making a name for themselves outside of Israel.

4.5/5 

Live Review: Zimmer//Koro Play Swapsies #2, Tel Aviv [15th November 2014]

The Orions

BEST

DUST

Tonight sees the second installment of venues Koro and The Zimmer swapping line ups. This time, bands of co-owners of Koro play The Zimmer.

DUST

I am loving this band right now. Tel Aviv based DUST are a hardcore band a la most NY bands/good stuff that came out on Bridge Nine Records. Although it's hardcore, DUST do not just play standard, get-your-2-step-on, sing-about-nothing hardcore. Within their groove-laden hardcore, these skilled musicians also use harmonious riffs and changing time sigs which they take from their more stoner and post hardcore influences. I have seen them play a few times before tonight, of course, and have loved them since the first performance. They play songs from their self titled mini album that I am already familiar with and others that I recall from previous shows, but tonight there was definitely some new ones and they had even more groove than the others. This makes me look forward to future recordings. The band plays energetically, like a hardcore band should. My current favourite of theirs is Numb due to it's wonderfully melodic and energising intro. And the last song of their set (name?) always gets me shouting along "I'M TIRED OF BEING SICK AND I'M SICK OF BEING TIRED." If you like hardcore/hardcore punk, you'll love this band.
5/5

BEST

Yet another band I've known from the scene, BEST is made up of members who are all already in about 3 other bands and who have some form of a hand in the running of the Koro venue. BEST crawled out of the woodwork about 3 years back after a bit of a lull on the "hardcore band" front in Israel. Tonight is the first time in quite a while that I've seen these guys. Tonight they decided to uniform up in dark jeans and white vests. As much as the songs are there, I wasn't totally blown away this time and felt like the songs just blended in together. Could be said about hardcore in general but only to an untrained ear. I love the guys and I love their other bands as well as this band's Of The Worst mini album but I think they need to get some really cool new tunes to really kick me in the manhood. 

3/5

The Orions

Another band I haven't seen in some time, Tel Aviv surf based band The Orions finish off tonight's show. Albeit performing to a now smaller audience, no-one can help but dance to some fun instrumental surf rock. That's what The Orions do well and what they've been doing for about the last 3 years. They have definitely improved in musicianship and have fortunately kept that same energy they've had since the beginning. As they work through material from their EPs, they definitely gained some new fans in my friends from London and other Orions virgins in the Zimmer tonight. You don't even need to have listened to The Orions recordings to enjoy an Orions show. It's just pure party music. They could play weddings if they wanted to. They probably will ...Hope I get invited. 

4/5