Nov 13 2008 11:00 am, Pic: Stacy Liu
Boy Crisis
Punk,
13/11/2008
Ever wondered what it’s like to be in a real-life Dead Set or Dawn Of The Dead-esque horror scene? Witnessing live music at the vomit-inducing, soul-less, fashion-gorge-fest that is Punk should give you a pretty good idea. We’re here to see Boy Crisis, who’ve landed in London on the back of yet another blog frenzy and are tipped for top stuff next year, even prompting whispers of ‘the next MGMT’ with their latest snappy, electro MySpace offerings.
Exciting times, then, but unfortunately you wouldn’t know it tonight, as the outlandishly-attired Brooklyn bunch play their hearts out to a gathering of wannabe scenesters who stand posing, pouting and chatting loudly over them. Good fun, fizzing funk-ridden efforts like ‘1981’, debut single ‘L’Homme’ and ‘Dressed To Digress’ make for killer listening, their juddering basslines, smart playful lyrics and falsetto combining beautifully with the fivesome’s charmingly geeky, jerky dance-offs - but it's all tragically lost on tonight's crowd. You’ve got to hand it to the boys, though: they soldier on admirably, laughing and joking between songs, grinning from ear to ear throughout and putting their all into a show that falls tragically flat reception-wise.
At various points during the performance gurning boys and girls slump past The Fly to the bar, loudly proclaiming such nuggets of wisdom as ‘who are these guys anyway?’ and ‘we need more beer’. These people are fools. Boy Crisis will be huge.
So here's our advice: next time these eccentric young upstarts sweep into your town, get yourself down to the front, show them that trendy London crowds are not typical of British gigging, and most importantly give them the party their magnificently twisted and tightly wound swoon-pop really deserves.
Camilla Pia
