The set opens with Radically Thinking Out Loud the line check that smashes through in a chaotic wall of noise. Heads blown off. Anybody not expecting this should leave now. And the surprising thing is people actually do. There are a few walk outs. Fuck 'em. People who came to see some incarnation of Space. The Drellas are developing a habit of shocking people out of their skins and venues.
Cash Converters strikes a chord with everyone who knows about the rotten ebay pawn culture. Story-telling qualities about the people who sell their wares, own mothers and their souls at the pawn shop and an awesome snyth hook from Masha.
Paedo Padre is like The Troggs on speed, The Sonics vocally and a Motorhead guitar riff packed full of The Drellas own wailing thrash, a real headfuck of a tune.
Apparently Antony's Brainwave is not a regular in The Drellas set and you can see why. This is the because it violates what the Drellas seem to stand for. The loud fast and aggressive element. The closest thing to the former songwriting life of Tommy Scott. This is, as he says almost ashamed, "the only one with anything close to a melody" The lighter in the air moment with its epic chorus.
Homophobic Pope is the complete opposite and acts the antidote for anyone getting carried away on the good times of Antony's Brainwave. 60 seconds long. Verse. Chorus. Verse. Chorus. Smash. Over.
Burn Down The School is The Drellas' circus song, childlike nursery rhyme melody taken from Oliver Twist's 'Food Glorious Food' but a complete call to anarchy. After all, who doesn't want to burn down their school?
Orchestra Of Tears is the first single from the band and the debut release from Antipop Records. Synthist, Masha takes lead vocals and belts out a scary tirade. Can you hear my Orchestra of Tears?
Dive In Bed maxis out the ultimate sleaze, the wiry guitar riff, the sirens call. relentless drums. The mating call of a punk band.
Violence Is Art is the two-tone climax to the set. The quick verses and the ultra fast choruses, give the stop start and the loud quiet to The Drellas sound.
And for all the Antipop jargon and political threats, this is the closet thing to pop music wrapped in a barbed wire and soaked in formaldehyde. You can listen to it but don't go near it. It's harsh abrasive, at times overpowering, always aggressive and defiant til the end. The spirit of punk rock is rolling to a new tune and a new beat.
Bristol Cooler 13/10/09
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