secret fireworks @ glasgowbury: kowalski
Kowalski are a band I've greatly enjoyed since the release of the Sunshine State EP: their indie pop rock goodness always reminded me of a more synth based Plans-era Death Cab For Cutie. I hadn't heard a peep out of them in 2009 and they haven't been touring as much as in recent years, which placed a little doubt in mind. The band promised new material at Glasgowbury and once again we asked ourselves will the Bangor juggernaut run out of steam?
I was hoping for this gig to answer those questions for me but they remain unanswered. Older tracks such as "Seesaw" sound as good as ever, with those distinctive synth riffs bouncing up and down with a crazy drum beat and crashing guitars combining with thoughtful lyrics. Songwriting is an art for these boys: you'll be happy to have a Kowalski song stuck in your head and chances are at least one will be permanently lodged in your brain.
We hear the words "this is a new song" and the audience collectively braces itself. The first new track isn't bad, but it's not great either. It lacks the certain je ne sais quoi we've come to expect from the band and dare I say it, it could even be regarded as filler instead of floor-filler. The next track is an improvement: with a keyboard riff that could have been lifted from a Cutaways number and a great chorus it seems to be a bit of a grower.
The band give us an old favourite in "Sunshine State" and we're reminded of what the band can do. Gradually the song builds layer by layer with some interesting drumming, a bending bassline and a clean guitar part followed by a big chorus. The scenesters are dancing in their wellies and it feels like all is good in the world, especially during the trademark breakdown in the middle of the track.
Finally, we hear "Japanese Waterfall", the new single. On first listen, it's not half bad: they seem to out do Two Door Cinema Club with a mazy riff that's both irritatingly catchy and danceworthy while there's another big chorus. It's typical Kowalski: nothing mindblowingly different but when you've got a good sound going it doesn't make sense to change it. We'd need a few more listens to pass real judgement on the new material, but fingers crossed we'll have the Kowalski we know and love back.
High point: The chorus in Seesaw, "we'll stay 'til it gets liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight". You can see a few thousand people singing along to that in the not too distant future.
Low point: The near deafening feedback that we experience during the second new song not just once but twice. I badly need to buy a pair of earplugs.
Final point: Don't pass judgement on the new material just yet, but we could have a winner on our hands. Maybe.
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