Tonight it’s a pleasure to be at Temple, Athens (Greece) where a band who need no introduction, A Place to Bury Strangers, are supported by two who do.
Opening are local duo HAU who offer distorted noise to the early birds of the event. These guys know how to make some noise and mash up genres so seamlessly that it can’t be pigeon holed into one or the other. They are definitely a live band and well worth watching if you see their name pop up on a bill sometime.
Berlin based quartet Plattenbau are up next. The international four piece offer up a blend of post punk and noise rock that is so smooth it flows from the stage like silk. ‘Shape/shifting’ plays with electronic noise and submissive guitar interplay, whilst tracks like ‘Tutankhamun’ are pure Bauhaus meets Fad Gadget. The set is executed with finesse and the crowd lap them up. A band that should be much bigger than they are, they come highly recommended.
APTBS have recently refreshed the group’s line-up by adding Ceremony East Coast’sJohn Fedowitz on bass and Sandra Fedowitz on drums. Ackermann and John Fedowitz are childhood friends who played together in the legendary Skywave, and the band has never sounded more current, more courageous, or more accessible. With two releases with the new line up now firmly under their belts, this tour is hotly anticipated and has sold out venues across Europe, tonight is no exception.
APTBS have set the bar high for themselves, live they are a shamanistic experience that bathes listeners in glorious sound, crazed left turns, transcendent vibrations, real-time experiments, brilliant breakthroughs. As much as I love this band, its not always easy to pick out the tracks from the wall of noise full frontal assault you are faced with.
From See Through You comes ‘Hold on Tight’, a stomper of a track with a catchy countenance that was an anticipated hit live and it certainly hits the mark. ‘Let’s See Each Other’ is another one with a powerful hook and even despite the slower tempo people are rocking along. ‘So Low’ sets the hairs on the back of your neck on edge with its vocal interplay and aural overload. Half way through the set there is the usual crowd inception and the packed venue is more than happy to accommodate them. ‘Alone’ from Worship has been a mainstay in the live set for a while, and for good reason; it encapsulates everything APTBS. From Exploding Head we are treated to ‘In Your Heart’ and ‘Keep Slipping Away’ much to the enthused fans delight. The set rounds off with an encore in the form of ‘Deeper’ from Transfixiation, arguably the perfect end to a perfect set – the only criticism being nobody wants it to end.
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