SUGAR HORSE
DOWNSTAIRS AT THE DOME, LONDON
Bristol’s SUGAR HORSE, aka “the loudest band in the world”, are a curious proposition, blending the spacey melancholia of Disintegration-era Cure with the grinding mechanical noise of Vertikal-era Cult Of Luna. They also, quite spectacularly, do not give a fuck, using around half their allotted set time to play their nihilistic 20-minute single Truth Or Consequences, New Mexico. Such a baller move from a lesser support act would risk losing a crowd, but everyone in the room this evening is simply enthralled. LLNN vocalist Victor Kaas emerges alone performing The Horror, a sort of Fear Factory-style mechanised cyber haka. But better. The band slowly emerge as the song comes to an almighty climax, before they kick things up another notch and obliterate the room with a black hole-creating rendition of Imperial. Unbelievably, this is the Danes’ first ever headline show in the UK, despite having formed almost a decade go. Next time they come back, they deserve to be playing the Dome’s much larger room upstairs… if the sound system can take it, that is.
REMFRY DEDMAN