I first heard Melt-Banana on the John Peel show on Radio 1 in the mid-nineties. I used to listen to that show fairly regularly in the hope that he would play something that would just blow me away. Although, he used to play the likes of Napalm Death, Carcass and Electro Hippies early on in their careers, by the mid-90s he didn't play heavy stuff as much so when he played Melt-Banana for the first time, I sat up and took notice. I'm not sure I liked it, it was probably way too crazy for me at that time and I didn't know what to make of Yasuko's yelping vocals. However, John played them a lot as he was fairly obsessed with their 'Scratch or Stitch' album and the more he played them, the more they chipped away at me until I quite liked it enough to buy the album myself.
I saw them live about ten years later and they seemed a totally different band. Gone were the frantic blasts, replaced by an insistent power and guitars which sounded like a circular saw slicing through my brain. It was very impressive, although I seem to have missed them every time they've toured subsequently.
The Sewer Cats open up the evening. They are a messy two piece riotgrrl/fempunk band. The drumming is pretty rudimentary and the guitar playing is standard three chord grungy punk. The drummer's vocals are pretty good though, high pitched and screeching but in a way that suits the music. There's a big Bikini Kill influence at play. There are also a number of songs which have a Johnny Cash outlaw country rhythm but much faster and more discordant. It's ramshackle but not unenjoyable.
Bleach Brain's opening track is riffy and rhythmic, not unlike CopShootCop if they were fronted by Courtney Love. The second track is more hardcore sounding. Another track (about creepy old men) is sixties pop given a punk makeover, like Minor Threat's cover of 'Steppin' Stone'. Their sound is rooted in 90s alt rock, and there are elements of 'Bleach' era Nirvana, Hole, Bikini Kill and Action Swingers in there. 'The Amp' is energetic and powerful. It has a a lo fi feel but is in your face and punchy. The final track even has a Melvins style sludgy middle section. Good stuff.
Melt-Banana open with a blistering 'Blank Page Of The Blind'. Yasuko's vocals aren't as abrasive as they are on record. The guitar work is phenomenal as Ichiro twists and tortures his instrument, pushing what it is capable of. The electronic beats are fast and relentless whilst the guitar often sounds like power tools. The array of pedals Ichiro has on his pedal board is something to behold. With the sounds he can conjure from his guitar, he is a true guitar hero. The material off the new album '3+5' is devastating. It's invigorating, driving, challenging yet accessible all at the same time. Is it punk, grind, noise or pop? It's a mixture of all those genres, They constantly surprise, making it fresh and exciting throughout. They play a number of songs during the encore but most of them are less than a minute long! Not quite 'You Suffer' but almost. The crowd is wild too, and they receive the best reaction I've seen for any band at this venue.
Melt-Banana *****
Bleach Brain ****
The Sewer Cats ***
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