Gig Guide
In 2009 Left or Right unleashed their debut five-song album “Nuggety” upon an unsuspecting Southland populace at Saints and Sinners.
If you weren’t there or your memory is a little fuzzy, Chris Chilton described the trio’s performance that night as having “all the incendiary firepower required to burn their silhouettes into the clubs and pubs throughout New Zealand”.
In other words, ‘twas smokin’ hot.
10 years later, a devilishly good-looking crowd gathered at the Southland Musicians Club curious to see if those reissued nuggety embers could burst into flame once more.
But before we get to that; let’s set the scene a little further.
Warming things up with an elemental fire spell was Filth Wizard – NZ. Their five-song set was an authentic showcase of progressive musical mastery and instrumental chemistry. Somehow the Wizards can mix disparate exotic scales with complex time signatures, wrap them in expressive dynamics and then present them as brutal yet subtle tracks that will get stuck in your head. Sorcery!
Next up to throw some fuel on the fire were the Silly Drunken Bastards. Their 13 song set sent rib-tickling mayhem and trashy love out into the audience.
The crowd certainly returned the love (even if no-one was forthcoming with a replacement G-string). Check out the inglorious Bastards’ new video to their recently released track “Hey You” on youtube. Mean jellybean.
Then, as the night drew on, the lights dimmed once more and a familiar bass riff echoed around the club.
Left or Right had arrived.
Not waiting for a formal invitation to dance, the audience spontaneously combusted into a twisting, turning, jiving and jamming, boogie fireball. Messrs Marshall, Marama, and Hampton stoke those flames with their iconic rock, ska, dub sounds and easily drew the crowd deep within their musical firestorm.
Damn.
The unforgettable tunes, three-part harmonies, hypnotic drums, fat bass, and cosmic guitar lines are just a part of the Left or Right experience. There’s also that intuitive and unspoken chemistry between three seasoned musos and their audience.
Trippy, Buzzy, Nuggety?
Frickin’ electric my friend.
Thanks for making this happen teams LOR and musos club. The sound was crispy (with some fancy footwork for onstage fixes), the lights were lit, the merch was merchy, and the drinkables were rather sinkable.
Tino pai rawa atu!
Review and more photos by Element Photography NZ