March 25, 2024

24-03-07 | Red Gate | Kidz Help Fone, Estelle Allen, Anita Velveeta

After languishing for days in his routine and mundane life, the herald has been dispatched to Red Gate where, on this Thursday night, a selection will be presented to appease His insatiable hunger.

With a long work week ending and an aging body that continues to betray him, the herald arrives just as the opening offering starts their set. With no time to waste, the herald quickly makes his way to the wide-open front and begins his divine flailing.

KIDZ HELP FONE

As I was greeted with an empty floor and a good number of people standing fifteen feet back from the stage, I realized this would be my first time flailing to their hardcore punk shit alone. Why the crowd was so lethargic is beyond me, as I have never seen a KHF floor so empty, but as always, it just means more room for me.

They go so hard, and with their new drummer locked in, they fucking demolish now. The drummer has a manic, animal quality about them. Constantly popping up, never seeming comfortable sitting down, brimming with energy. They played with ferocity and power, a force of nature propelling their sound.

Fucking loved the guitar tone the guitarist laid down. It was dirty yet clear, such wonderful noises blasting into my ears. With the lead singer in full-blown screaming/petulant child mode, the energy coming off the stage fueled my high-whirling, mad-flailing nonsense as I occupied as much of that open space as possible.

By the last song, a handful of people finally joined me in the flailing, but what took them so long will bewilder me for a long time.

ESTELLE ALLEN

Joining us from Los Angeles, this duo featured the lead singer, who occasionally picked up the guitar, and a drummer who was the driving force of this one. They offered up a melodic, distorted, thumpy set that one minute reminded me of pop and the next a solid punk vibe. It was an exciting mix.

They played a few new songs, though it was all new to us as this was their first time playing outside of Los Angeles. Vancouver did a decent job welcoming them, as the crowd seemed to have woken up a little.

The lead singer was charming and engaging. They came down into the now more active pit a few times, once just sitting on the ground playing guitar. They used a whole whack of vocal modulators that essentially masked their voice, giving it a very digital sound.

The drums -the source of my flailing- were on point. Tight and exciting, they were fun as fuck to follow as I spun my way around the floor. They always played something creative to give everything a different feel.

Either this crowd needed a warmup set to get into things or simply more alcohol. Whichever it was, they were much more engaged on this offering, even getting a solid little mosh pit going at the end.

ANITA VELVEETA

Another visitor from across the border, Minneapolis, a trio offering up a fun set of punk/alt-rock good times with a bit of occasional funk thrown in there for good measure.

The lead singer and band namesake were engaging and charming, with lovely self-effacing humor. They spoke about how much they loved Vancouver, which is usually the wrong thing to say at a Vancouver punk show. They get a pass since whatever issues one has with this city, we can be thankful we are north of the border. Agreed.

They also played guitar, and while it was never really the focus of any song when they busted out something, their talent was evident. I would really love to see them use that guitar a little more and see what they can do with it. The little bits I saw were just a tease.

The solid rhythm section, drummer, and bassist round out this band with a tight sound for the lead singer to play over. Great thumping drums and steady bass riffs to get and keep my feet moving. They even managed to get a circle pit going now that this crowd had warmed up properly.

Someone asked them to play a specific song, which they obliged. Traveling thousands of kilometers to a foreign city, playing a show at a small local place, and having someone request a specific song is fantastic. Can’t turn that shit down.

He was pleased with tonight’s offerings.

Infect the others