Top Floor Gallery - Fri Jul 10

The Top Floor Gallery is an intimate venue for tonight’s proceedings and its acoustics give a special little something to opener’s The Surrogate. Tonight’s their first show with a new line-up, but apart from a rare sloppy section or two, their hypnotic take on metal is a polished and crushing affair.

Quiet Steps are next and immediately take us on another musical avenue. Full of jagged melodies and complex rhythms, their avant-garde songs ebb and flow and meander on the journey to their eventual destination, showcasing astute musicianship and a talent for unique songwriting.

Art rock group Arrows change the mood yet again: songs are built up and explosively released, leaving descriptions such as ethereal and heartfelt wafting around the room. In all honesty though, the only way to describe their set: majestic.

To The North seem a little off tonight. Their songs are impressive, and front man Cam Gillard gives it all he has, but the band’s chemistry is somewhat disjointed. Just when they get it together and start hitting their straps, they cut their set short, which is a crying shame.

I’m told that the performance by Michigan’s post-hardcore group La Dispute at The Jubilee the night before was a sight to behold, but by God, from the moment they sink their teeth into snarling opener Damaged Goods, it’s obvious that tonight they’re setting a new benchmark. The small crowd’s love for the band is evident throughout the set, singing along whenever they have the chance and it’s hard not to be swept away by the fervent energy vocalist Jordan Dreyer exudes, or by the fact that the rest of the band match the intensity of their debut album on songs such as Said The King To The River. If you were not here tonight, you missed out on something truly special.

LINDSEY CUTHBERTSON

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