Melt Banana @ Brudenell Social Club, Leeds14 June 2017
away from the keyboard, I only saw one copy of this poster. It was clutched in the hand of a very happy and slightly guilty looking girl who had probably peeled the artwork off a wall from somewhere in the venue. She had taken it to the merch table to get it signedThis was the third and final gig for me of Melt Banana’s UK tour, and unfortunately I’d just got a pesky “print at home” e-ticket. Pah! Not only is there the frustration of having to print out an ugly ticket receipt for the gig, then having the door man ignore it and ask for my name for his check-list, a tatty sheet of paper doesn’t feel worthy of getting signed as a reminder of the gig. Though it could be useful as a reminder in case of dire emergency, and sometimes it can be a really dire emergency.
As is often the case lately, I caught a late train gig-wards, the last one I could have safely taken to get to the gig in time. Luckily there were no problems with the trains, signals, or the two transfers I had to make and I didn’t get lost trying to find the cheap B&B I was staying at, or then finding my way to the gig.
I’ve been to the Brudenell a couple of times before for Shonen Knife gigs, so parts of the route were vaguely familiar. This knackered old git has gotta start using taxis, ‘cos I’ll have to admit, I’m not really up to doing so much walking, even though I prefer to walk. For me, getting to and from the venue is all part of the gig experience and I wanna make the most of it. Sadly, I didn’t think there was quite enough time for me to stop off and get into a sticky mess with some tasty gelato ice-cream, tempting though it was. When going to gigs it often seems that I have to miss out on exotic ice creams. Usually it is because the parlours are closed as I'm walking on my way to gigs. But not tonight, two Gelato palaces were open to tempt me on my way to Melt Banana.
When I got to the venue there was already a fair size crowd of people gathered outside taking advantage of the evening sun to drink, smoke and chat before the first band were due to start playing. At the entrance was a handy notice displaying the times the bands would be on stage, so I knew I still had enough time to cool down from the walk. Phew!
Stepping inside from the bright sunlight to a dimly lit and poster bedecked entrance area you are met with two doorways. The one to the right leads to a well lit bar, to the left a doorway leads to the gig area. That’s my first stop. Name checked off on the list, and a stamp on the back of the hand and I was in.
Inside the gig area, the gloom steps up a notch and so did the temperature. You are met by a large, black painted room dotted with lights and posters of past and future gigs. The entrance is mid way along the back wall. The bar is to your right, a large open area to the left and the stage is the far side of the room opposite you. The room is set out on two levels. About half way across the room towards the stage are some railings forming a balcony area then it is down five or six steps to the pit in front of the stage. Handily, the stage is a good hight to lean against.
All of the prime seats at the tables along the edge of the balcony rails were already full of eager gig goers who’d bagged their “perfect spots”. Along the walls of the pit area is a row of bench seating with a scattering of people settling down for the evening, but most people were either still in the bar, or airing themselves outside.
I quickly spotted the merch table and made a bee-line for it.
Woo-hoo! Freshly restocked with goodies. At my previous two gigs on this tour, the table was pretty bare. Just t-shirts, the 7” split single, Fetch on CD, and badges. Now there were more CDs to choose from, and three albums on 12” vinyl. Yasuko Onuki was on merch duties just now, so a brief chat and I bought a CD copy of “Return of 13 Hedgehogs (MxBx singles 2000 – 2009)”. This is the MxBx material from thirteen split singles they’ve done during this period. I promised myself that I'd be back for more merch after the gig.
Now there was just enough time for some syrupy tooth-rot burp juice, a cigarette and a brief sit in the evening sun before the first band was due to play.
Back inside again and the room is rapidly filling up, with the crowd forming a respectful arc in front of the stage. It is nearly time for the support band, Ona Snop, a local four-piece thrash band who seem to be well known and popular with the crowd. This vid from 2016 will give you an idea of what their performance is like
youtu.be/JtV9lkTtvos As in that vid, the singer spent the whole of their set down at crowd level, using up all of the space that had been left for him to prowl in.
Then it was time for the stage to be cleared of drums and excess kit, and MxBx’s equipment was to be set up. The wall of speakers across the back of the stage were shuffled forwards and lined up, monitor speakers rearranged into arcs around guitar and vocal positions and Ichirou Agata brought on two banks of pedals mounted on anti-slip mats and are much more convenient than the yards of gaffa tape which he used to use. With their kit set up, MxBx briefly leave the stage and the audience fills out into a sweating throng crowding the stage.
A few minutes later MxBx mount the stage for the start of their set and hush of anticipation falls over the room. After a selection of computer game type beeps and squeaks, and a few guitar riffs pumped into samplers, the sound slowly squeals louder and higher then its all go MxBx mayhem. With no new album to promote, the set is sprinkled with a collection of of recent-ish songs, old favourites and a couple of cover songs. With the first song spraying into the air I’ve got my fingers crossed and my hopes up, then Yasuko starts singing.
Phew, the sound engineer has done a good job, I can clearly hear singing. At my previous two gigs on this tour the sound mix has been less than good with Yasuko’s vocal level being very low and barely audible. Sure, for some of their releases the songs have been mixed that way, but its really not what you want live at a gig – especially as there are only two band members performing.
From the start of their set, MxBx hit the loud and fast button with howling yelps and squeals from Yasuko and some barks yapped out from the Seven Short Songs littering in the middle of their set – that was Dog Song marking its territory.
We were treated to searing guitar runs and swipes from Agata, all backed up by samples keyed from Yasuko’s hand controller which she brandished throughout the set. Between songs she briefly retired to her back corner of the stage where a laptop was set up. A few taps on the keyboard to set up for the next song and she quickly resumed her position on stage.
For this gig, like for the Bristol gig, I had grabbed a spot at Yasuko’s side of the stage but this time to the side of her bludgeoning keypad rather than directly in front of it. At the Bristol gig, a number of times that scything hunk of plastic had sliced the air only inches from my eyes. Very flinch-making.
We lapped up the glorious sounds of a really tight set. The familiar fast songs were soothing as the temperature quickly rose to melting point. The room was already overheating before MxBx started being energetic on stage and now the closely packed crowd soon turned it into a sauna. I'm sure everyone was drenched in sweat. I certainly was and smoke machine only added to the effect - where's the dry ice when you need it? Watching the lights glistening on the rivulets of sweat streaming down an energetic Yasuko’s neck and face was mesmerising. Agata’s face mask alternated between ballooning out and being sucked hard against his face as he gasped for breath in the humid air but he never eased off his thrashing.
I’ve no idea how many were in the crowd, but looking across the room I saw a sea of happy faces packed closely together with a lot of female faces spread through the room. Especially over on Agata’s side of the stage which I guess is understandable – he had his naked forearms with pumped veins exposed for them to see and drool over. It seems women find that expanse of exposed flesh rather appealing and there are also his playing skills and his guitar hero shapes and poses to admire.
The songs flew thick and fast, with only short breaks and brief moments of chat between numbers though we were invited to join them at the merch table when it reopens at the end of the show as there were lots of things on offer. T-shirts, CDs and records.
All too soon, the show was over, encores played and as the echoes of Candy Gun ricocheted off the walls then faded into crowd cheers MxBx left the stage, one to man the merch table and brave the horde of fans surging in that direction, the other to pack gear away with each of them taking turns to do their part.
Once the crush had eased off, I made my way to the merch table to grab a copy of Bambi's Dilemma on lovely 12" vinyl. I'd been wanting a copy for ages, but for some reason had resisted ordering a copy, using a copy a friend had burned for me to stave off the pangs of missing out. Or perhaps it only made them worse. Now I'm the proud owner of an autographed copy. Yay! As she was signing my album, Yasuko thanked me for coming to see them again, remembering having seen me at the other gigs. I guess the white beard is kinda noticeable.
MxBx were very non-committal, but when asked, said there was a possibility of new material next year. But no promises were made, so make of that what you will.
On the walk back to the B&B the Ice Cream parlours were still open for late-night business, so I stopped off for a taste of frozen goodness and got into a very sticky mess with it. But like Melt Banana, it was so damn good, a real treat. Mmm...
Other pics I cut and may not have used....
postimg.org/gallery/2lufarve2/