The second you step inside the classy confines of Camden’s Jazz Café, you know that this isn’t going to be your usual metal gig. COLLAPSING SCENERY [7] are up on the stage, delivering an impressive set of arthouse synth rock.
It’s probably the first time a band that meld touches of UK indie oddities Art Brut with post-punk legend Julian Cope have been featured in these pages.
In fact, without the inclusion of Dillinger Escape Plan frontman Greg Puciato, you wonder if THE BLACK QUEEN [8] would fit here either. Bathed in white light and clad in black, there is a definite menace to the band, but songs like Secret Scream sound like LCD Soundsystem scoring Stranger Things rather than anything that could be described as heavy metal. With Puciato prowling the stage like the genetic splicing of Henry Rollins and Depeche Mode’s Dave Gahan, however, Maybe We Should/Non-Consent becomes something far more threatening than a mere pop song. Guitarist Steven Alexander also deserves credit for bringing a Sonic Youth-style wall of white noise to the band’s live shows. Even if you’re just into ‘heavy music’ The Black Queen are worth your time, giving you the darkest dance party our world has ever witnessed.
