Arrows of Love/Arkland
The Hydrant, Brighton
21/05/2011

Born out of the flames of defunct experimental indie-folk outfit Hush The Many (Heed the Few), Arrows of Love most definitely bring the noise. While Hush The Many were purveyors of ethereal, spine-tingling music, Arrows of Love are more likely to snap your vertebrate into tiny pieces. Taking inspiration from a raft of post-punk bands, this band teeter constantly on the edge of exploding into distortion-fuelled madness, yet are still able to pull things back for moments of beautifully honest melancholy. 

Before all that, local boys Arkland put in an accomplished set, displaying songwriting maturity far beyond their years. Refreshingly, they appear to be having the time of their lives, and the young crowd are extremely receptive. Unfortunately, this raucous reception reveals something. The venue is rammed with Arkland fans. In fact, by the time the main act appears, many have dispersed and those that remain hang at the back. Undeterred, Arrows take to the stage like a band possessed, the first three songs flying by in a blur of distorted guitars and impromptu crowd invading from frontman Nima Teranchi. The standout track is ‘Prescriptions’, a noisy two and half minute garage-rock burst of adrenaline, with Teranchi switching between spoken word and screeched vocals with aplomb. After a few quick words on the impending rapture (no one is struck down), Teranchi tells the crowd they are going to “bring it in a little”. What follows is beautiful. ‘The Knife’ is a soulful, eerie masterpiece, with Teranchi and bandmate Lindsey Critchley lending beautifully contrasting vocals.

The rest of the set is in the frenetic vein of its beginning, with Teranchi only addressing the crowd once to apologise for the “fart sounds” of his bass guitar. Admittedly, the venue’s sound is somewhat lacking. After using the final song as an excuse to round up large portions of the audience with his mic lead, Teranchi mutters “thank you”, throws his microphone to the floor and departs, perhaps disappointed by the size of the crowd. He shouldn’t be. He and his band are destined for bigger things.

Jet Vevers