Gliss
Night & Day, Manchester
02/11/2009

Tonight Gliss are well and truly out of their comfort zone. More used to basking in the Los Angeles heat with plenty of pals for company, this evening’s show is a more sombre affair, holed up at the back of Manchester’s sweatiest venue on a rainy Monday night. Only tonight, the nearest we are to breaking a sweat is the rare moment singer Martin speaks. There’s a crowd of just ten or so lurking in the corners and you get the feeling that if he were about to declare his own fuzz-fuelled war on the city, even the regulars wouldn’t bat an eyelid.

Fortunately, suitably casual in scuffed-up turn-ups and touches of plaid, this trio is too preoccupied to care. Instead they’re on a mission to teach us the essence of true noise and from the first chord, our ears are pinned back by the distortion and feedback – as if we stumbled upon Black Rebel Motorcycle Club jamming in a cave with Jesus & The Mary Chain. The Fly’s senses are battered with a sonic swing-ball of reverb and as they plough through debut album ‘Devotion Implosion’, long drawn-out vocal harmonies and Spector-esque drum rhythms lure any bystanders into a hypnotic trance. Like some kind of impenetrable forcefield, a great wall of sound erupts and leaves ears ringing like the post-removal of a Dyson that’s been sucked to our lugs for a good hour or so.

The fact it all comes from three ice-cool, narcoleptic looking souls on stage only makes it the more impressive. Centre stage, Victoria effortlessly slaps the drum kit whilst bassist David strikes a pose whenever he feels the urge. They say very little, do even less, only briefly switching instruments between songs. It’s an unsteady balance between brooding and nonchalance and a little more effort wouldn’t go amiss, but it’s also a Marlboro Light away from true rock n roll and only a matter of time before Gliss truly shine.

Lisa Durrant