HW: Underground Zero & Litmus

[Jonathan Jarrett]

On Sat, Oct 01, 2005 at 08:45:11PM +0100, Colin Allen typed out:
> Following their triumphant return at last night's Space Rock
> Spectacular, this is a reminder that Underground Zero can be seen again this Friday (7th October) at the Standard Music Venue in Walthamstow(http://www.standardmusicvenue.co.uk), where they will be
> playing on the same bill as Litmus.
>
> So that should be a gentle, quiet night then!

        Reasonable BOC-L contingent along to relax as well :-) One of them
asked if I was going to review it and I said yes, so, here goes.

        It's always nice to have an excuse to go to the Standard really,
and I was particularly interested to see how Underground Zero would be,
and I admit, prepared to be disappointed, because how many bands survive
an eleven-year absence in the real world intact? On the other hand it's
not as if I saw them way back when, so I had only the two UZ0 tracks on
the various Friends'n'Relations compilations to go by. I also wans't sure
if I was going to be able to manage the full set, because I'd assumed they
were headlining and there didn't seem to be enough time to fit everyone in
if, as I was told, Litmus were going on at ten, before I had to run for
last train home.

        In fact, UZ0, with what seems to be characteristic humility, had
opted to go first, probably because they didn't have a full-length set
worked up. Line-up was two guitars, drums etc., bass/vox, singer and
synths, and immediately I knew it would be more or less all right as one
guitarist (maybe both?) was playing a Gibson and the bassist had a
Rickenbacker and the cast-iron law of quality that this arrangement brings
can only be broken by the Hibachi Dealers :-)

        Nah, they were all right. Star performers were the synth player
and the drummer I think, the latter filling the space very full indeed but
I have to say not with very much swing, an oddly mathematical style he
had. The synths started us off, however, big wshes of cold space warming
up slowly but then abruptsly disappearing for a riff. I don't know what
the song they opened with was (I know very little UZ0 material, as I
said) but it proved that the singer still sounds the same, and in fact, so
does the band. The guitarists maybe showed a touch of age, but the bassist
appeared to have been time-warped from 1983, the only side-effect being a
greying of hair. I don't know how old he is but I hope I look that young
when I am as well. It sounded like the band I had on CD, except with
newer synths.

        I don't think they really *needed* two guitars, and everything
could have been a bit tighter maybe, and is she really a good singer or
just very distinctive, and for far far too much of the gig the bass was
slightly lost in the mix which robbed them of a punch that otherwise only
the drummer was really providing, but, the grins of disbelief across
several of their faces showed that it was going a lot better than they'd
expected and their enjoyment was infectious. Especially the bass-player
but the whole band to a lesser degree gave off a strong impression of
being a big bunch of kids who had stepped up on stage thinking themselves
the worst band in the universe and now not believing they were getting
away with it. I was minded of Nick Saloman's interviews where he says that
every album that sells he thinks "but I'm an old fart! When are they going
to realise?" UZ0 looked like they were having a similar realisation that
they had everyone, maybe even themselves, fooled. And fair enough. They
went through something that was probably called `Nevermore', then two big
dreamy numbers--the second of which was just starting to do some really
interesting things with interlocking treble lines when they stopped
dammit--but when they got to `Aimless Flight' it was clear that whatever
they'd had in 1983 when they recorded it, they still had, in fact this was
probably a better version.

        So for people who loved UZ0 this was surely a damn good showing,
and for those of us who were friendly but not in love, if you see what I
mean, it was a creditable attempt to deny the power of time. I'm not sure
that they can ever be more than an endearingly amateur outfit winging it
along the space-time curve, and I hope they get gig-fit enough that
they feel happy to seize those moments when the instruments start talking
to each other ("It's a sympathiser...") and go with it, because then their
slight uncertainty might become a strength, but it was pretty good for
what felt like a very young band still seeing things they couldn't quite
reach yet, rather than an old one out of ideas.

        They only played six songs. Colin tells me the last one was
`Genocide', which they hadn't been ready to play last gig--it really
didn't show, it was pretty good--and went off after explaining "We don't
know any more!" and it still wasn't ten, so all of a sudden the evening
looked like it would all fit after all, and I was nicely disposed for it
and went and bought the UZ0 CD so however critical I may seem you can tell
I liked them really.

        Litmus were on fairly soon after, and lost no time apart from the
obligatory synth warm-up, moving straight into `Destroy the Mothership'
even before Anton had got the vocal sample they usually introduce it with
to an audible level. Kicked arse of course, and nicely drew the difference
between the bands. Underground Zero were pleased that anyone was staying
to watch, but Litmus were coming to get us, at fearsome speed. They kept
up the pace with a much shortened version of `The Tempest'. I thought this
was one of the more successful versions of what's to me always been an
unhappily-formed song, mainly because it left most of the difficulties
out, but I fear it says something that even though they'd got warm
applause for `Destroy...' there was not a single clap when they stopped
`Tempest'. I'm not sure anyone had really managed to get into the song
before it ended. Really, they should just redo `Invader', they share the
best bit of `Tempest' which is the intro riff and I'm not sure whether
there's any way to save `Tempest' by now (though if they want to try I
would nominate inserting `Earth' into the middle of it somehow, just
because I'm determined to have them put that cadence on record somehow).

        Anyway, they didn't appear rattled by the sudden loss of audience
enthusiasm, but lured people back into their frame of mind by doing `You
Are Here', which with gentle twittering and slowly-thickening texture
pulled the atmosphere close round the room in time for it to be pummelled
by the building riff, and I think that had most people back with them, but
even if it didn't, what they did next solved almost every problem in the
entire world. Martin was explaining rather vaguely that they weren't
playing at the Gong Family Unconvention after all, which was a pity
because they all loved Gong, and then without explaining further
they dropped into a stabbing riff out of nowhere which, with delighted
horror, I recognised as `Dynamite' from _Camembert Electrique_. Blimey!
You'll never see Gong do it like that, I imagine, though I wouldn't like
to say that it was impossible for them given how eclectic the most recent
line-up was, but all the same. Litmus hammered it home and then went on
their own for the break, no whisper vocals just punch, returning rapidly
to the riff and finishing with the sign-off "don't expect us to ever do
that again!" To which I can only say, "oh, g'wan g'wan g'wan you will you
will you will" because it was bloody excellent.

        Losing no time, `Under the sign' followed, and what a monster of a
piece this is. I had a stitch before very long but I didn't care. And even
once it had finally finished, after a deliberately false stop, and after
some really high-flying jamming in the middle too--never the same break
twice, I do admire that--they gave me no chance to breathe because a
sequencer burble announced the approach of `Theta Wave Inductor' which is
the most danceable thing they've so far done and was my favourite right
up until I first heard `Under the Sign', and basically I wasn't going to
be allowed to stand still.

        Just like to say, by now some other people were dancing, so it
isn't just me they're playing to which is always something of a relief,
especially as unlike me with my rather haphazard staggering these people
could actually dance. For a while though it did seem as if I was the only
one getting it. But anyway.

        A brief interlude followed which I badly needed and then they
headed into the close of the set with two newish numbers, so new I didn't
know the titles for sure, anyway; one was probably called `Projection',
which I like, high-up jagged vocals and churning riffery, and the latter
of which I later discovered is called `Far Beyond', and this was really
very good, as epic as `Under the sign' but in a lighter vein which might
just let it balance out that piece on the eventual album. I tell you this
my friends, it's not going to be a difficult second album thing this one,
they've got the new stuff and it's great. I just want them to get on and
finish it.

        Anyhow, there was of course calling for encores, and eventually
the band re-emerged with a promise that they were going to try something a
bit chaotic, and the appearance of another guitarist, another bass-player
and a high-hat and snare for another drummer told us that there was going
to be an Underground Zero portion of the chaos too. As Martin explained,
Litmus don't know any UZ0 songs and UZ0 don't know any Litmus songs, so
it was really only a question of exactly which of their biggest
influence's songs they were going to try, and I can't say I was exactly
disappointed to discover it was `Brainstorm'. A long version, too, and
continuous, and though I don't think they were ever all flying free at
once nonetheless everyone got a jam in one way or another except *perhaps*
UZ0's guitarist who didn't seem as happy with it as everyone else. The
genuine article anyway, and cunningly finished off with the end section
the song wears on _California Brainstorm_ which I thought was a nice touch
(I haven't played that album for much too long actually). So all was very
definitely well that had ended well and I went home with the bassline
from `Under the Sign' firmly jammed in my head and loving it.

        I want that album dammit. Until then, the next gig is happily at
my local, which is nice of them, so I assume I'll see you all
there... :-) Yours,
                    Jon

ObCD: Blue Oyster Cult - _Secret Treaties_
--
        Jonathan Jarrett                Birkbeck College, London
                 jjarrett at chiark.greenend.org.uk
        --------------------------------------------------------
  "The large print giveth and the small print taketh away." (Tom Waits)