Live review

And You Will Know Us By Trail of Dead

Scala, London

added: 14 Oct 2012 // gig date: 10 Oct 2012
reviewer: Paul Chapinal

And You Will Know Us By Trail Of Dead have been regular visitors to these shores for some years now, steadily building an audience on the back of solid albums and energetic live performances. And after eight albums they appear to have reached something of a plateau and that’s why we are at the Scala, a smallish venue that is not really suited to live music.

First up were Leicester band Maybeshewill who took the stage and proceeded to play an interesting set of proggish rock. As they don’t have a singer the emphasis was on the music and keeping punters involved which by the reaction, they did.

…Trail of Dead came on to Ode to Isis and proceeded to lay waste to the Scala. The first song proper was Strange News from Another Planet and this lengthy song encapsulates what the band are about. At times beautifully subtle; creating complex sonic shapes and patterns, countered by some of the hardest, fastest, grittiest rock you are ever going to hear.

Driven by the pumping powerhouse rhythm section of Autry Fulbright II, with Jamie Miller and Jason Reece swapping the drum stool, it was Conrad Keely as the main vocalist, to be at the centre of the maelstrom on the stage. That was until Reece on lead vocals dipped into the crowd for some good natured crowd surfing. However it would be invidious to pick out an individual performance as collectively they were at the controls, flying at Mach 2.

The super-sonics took back seat when Autry Fulbright II, spotting a camera in the audience, offered to take some photographs of himself and the band before handing it back, which was a very nice moment.

It’s hard to pick highlights from such a stunning set but the brace of Up to Infinity (from the new album) and Mistake and Regrets were sublime. And closing with incendiary versions the Weight of the Sun, Homage and Totally Natural was inspired.

Encoring with Another Morning Stoner. Keely commented that they had recorded the video in the long gone Astoria. That’s a while now and maybe time to ponder if …Trail of Dead, as hard as they work, are ever going to move up from this size of venue. One would hope so.

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