24-04-14 | Lanalou’s | Hi-Dive, Aliens At Home | Disposable Disguises

Tonight, the herald has received a summons to Lanalou’s, where three offerings will be laid before Him to appease His eternal desires. As he was invited to this event, his free will taken, the herald is compelled to accept all requests that wish to show they can please Him.

The warm evening air greets him as he enters the venue, late as usual, where the opening offering has already started. Slipping through the crowd, the herald makes his way to the front, where his task begins.

HI-DIVE

This is the first-ever offering from this newly formed band, rising from the ashes of a recently split one. As I was late, I only caught the second half of this offering, which was a nice dose of grunge/rock. Some songs give a chill/moody downturn vibe, while others have some good thick rocking, especially when the lead singer puts down the guitar.

Simple yet effective bass riffs come across nice and clean, with equally simple drums played with skill and style to match. It was a great blend of simplicity, catchiness, and groove.

The lead vocals were clean and came across nicely, especially in the more chill songs, where they allowed their emotion to dictate the song, giving them a genuine vibe. They had great energy and engaged with the crowd well.

The crowd, a solidly busy pack of humans, especially for a Sunday night, were digging it, with several folks getting a little flailing by the end.

ALIENS AT HOME

Another first-ever offering from this trio, having previously played together as a GREEN DAY cover band, was a full-blown forty minutes of pop-punk. With a fuck tonne of energy, they plowed through their set of mostly originals, all in that upbeat, clean vocal bounce around good time.

They were confident, engaging, and charming up there. The lead singer and bassist were equally talkative, and their interactions flowed very smoothly. They clearly played a lot on stage together in their previous incarnation.

It’s pretty straightforward pop-punk without anyone reinventing the wheel. Their originals were fun; besides a Bob Dylan song, I did not recognize the covers. However, as is always the case, I preferred their originals. 

The vocals were strong, impressive, and had some good power behind them, as they really nailed the songs. Played guitar as well and still has a focused vocal output.

The crowd has thinned a bit, opening up more floor space for me to move around during the fun and bouncy pop-punk good times.

DISPOSABLE DISGUISES

This quartet was the only repeat offering—and their first in a while—on the night, and they sounded great. Their set was dreamy/grungy, with great energy throughout. They even got a little ethereal at times, taking us on a ride. 

Their style was grunge, with beautiful, moody vocals, capturing the mood nicely with emotion and strength. That said, when they were quiet, I found them hard to hear over the bass and guitar. 

The guitar tones alternated between simmering and ethereal to classic squealy, giving us some sexy solos that were delicious to dig into. The whole band was tight, fluid, and damn entertaining, all weaving together so well and creating a great atmosphere.

The set came with a fantastic visual element, as spliced videos from various movies, cartoons, and nineties music videos played on the screen behind them. The videos were in tandem with the songs, and they matched up very well. This added a significant element to a really well-thought-out and constructed set.

The crowd had thinned, as is typical of a Sunday night, but those that remained were grooving and formed a circle pit for the last songs. There was great energy right until the end.

He was pleased with tonight’s offerings.