Skin tight rock n roll
Considering they are a band more accustomed to late nights and darkness, Howling Bells performed manfully in the open air. They were aided by the gloomy skies over Connect but nonetheless, it was a sterling performance for such an early time in the afternoon. The swelling of the crowd throughout the set was a symbol of how well the band adapted to their early start.
It was also obvious that the band can adapt to tricky situations like tight trousers. Lead singer Juanita Stein was sporting a fantastic pair of what looked like lurex leggings but the boys were no slouches in that department either, wearing the sort of trousers that only Brand or Fielding would consider to be worth trying.
Musically, there remains a menace about the band and if anything, this sense of tension seems even stronger on the new material but the old favourites were still warmly received. ‘Low Happenings’ was triumphant and earned the biggest cheer of the day so far.
Giving an extra dimension to the music was the large drum at the front of the stage which various members would use to add their percussion stamp to proceedings. It was used with great effect by Stein as she thumped out the last beat of the set and nonchalantly threw her drumsticks into the crowd whilst the band brought the song to a feed backing crescendo around her.
It was an almost “blink and you’ll miss it” show by Howling Bells but with new material on the way shortly hopefully there will be the chance to get reacquainted with the act soon.