Live Review

Gay For Johnny Depp – Westcoast Bar, Margate

• 15th Mar 2011

The newly refurbished Westcoast bar looks set for a treat tonight, a stellar line-up of five bands promising much more excitement than your average Sunday night. First up is Man Hands, a bass-less quartet who seem focused on nothing but noise, each song a screaming current of energy that, sadly, lacks in any form of melody. Although they’re tight as a unit, every song seems to bleed into the next one, leaving the listener with no lasting impressions. Man Hands seem as if they can’t really be bothered to try connecting with the audience tonight, and the set suffers for it; for serious fans of their genre, there might be something worth listening to here, but for most people, their particular nothing-but-screams approach lacks enough substance to warrant a second listen.

The oddly-named Yamaharahara are up next, and they blow Man Hands right off the stage. Frantic, unpredictable and with a great balance of melody and energy, they quickly convert the attending audience into fans. Although a broken drum leads to an impromptu break in their set, the inevitable loss of energy is quickly recovered to finish with a flourish. This is a band with a lot going for them, great tunes and a ton of invention resulting in a sound that doesn’t fit any one genre, but appeals to fans of many. Very impressive.

Things continue to get better as Scholars take the stage, grabbing the audience’s attention immediately and refusing to let go; despite a host of microphone problems, their phenomenal song writing and stage presence shine through to create a storming set, rising and falling in intensity with expert control. Scholars are big on just about everything: choruses, energy, riffs, this band have the lot, and in their two-track Tornadoes/Fractures (available from iTunes), they have two of the best singles I’ve ever heard from an unsigned band. Finishing their set with an all-out war on each other, Scholars ensure that nobody in attendance will forget them quickly; definitely a band worth checking out.

You could understand if The Computers were wary after technical problems prevented Yamaharahara and Scholars from hitting their best form, but they show no signs of it as they storm the stage with unbridled passion and energy. Their frontman spends more time in the crowd than he does onstage, forcing all and sundry to give him their undivided attention. The Computers blow all before them away tonight, playing an absolutely outstanding set that truly has to be seen to be believed. If Yamaharahara and Scholars were excellent, the superlative to describe The Computers simply doesn’t exist. Honestly, if you take one thing from this review, go and see them live. As soon as possible. Seriously. You won’t regret it.

Gay For Johnny Depp would seem to have a thankless task, following such an incredible set, but they attack the crowd with venom and intensity, getting ever better as the set goes on. Although they don’t quite match The Computers level, they’re not far behind, which is actually a much bigger compliment than you might think. While GFJD are, by their own admission, not the most professional of units, the flipside is that they make everyone in the audience feel like a member of their gang, turning the crowd into an army of believers who lap up every song. Filling their set with banter and crowd interaction, as well as a brief rendition of “Angels” by Robbie Williams in a song dedicated to the death of Brit-Pop, they’re a band who know how to put on a great show, even in a smaller venue such as this. Despite the waning energy levels in the room, Gay For Johnny Depp whip the audience into a frenzy, and just as everyone in attendance has fallen completely in love with them, the final chorus of “Cum On Feel The Boize” brings to an end a frankly brilliant show. It may not have had the best of starts, and some noticeable technical issues did their best to mar the middle 3 bands, but in Yamaharahara, Scholars, The Computers and Gay For Johnny Depp, Margate has witnessed four absolutely astounding bands on one bill. What a Sunday, what a show.