Black Moth + Grave Lines + Black Asteroids, The Sunflower Lounge, Birmingham- review
When it is this darn cold outside, you know there are a few places in Birmingham that can warm you up for a few hours before kicking you back out into the rasping wind’s icy slaps.
One such pit stop is The Sunflower Lounge, and when they had a line-up this raucous it was only going to end in one fashion – music lovers showing the kind of neck strength the Churchill dog would drool over.
First up were local lads Black Asteroids. Instrumental and with Simon Donovan rocking the bass like Peter Hook himself, they had a large following with them who were treated to some funk-laden metal. Of particular note was Saturn, a gargantuan track that contained some pretty longing bass before ending with both of the two-piece repeating what they had just done on glockenspiels.
So with that one ringing in our ears, literally, we awaited course number two of the three-band feast. This was Grave Lines, who ramped up the fear and loathing with their hell on earth doom sound.
While the pace of their set jarred a little, when they did go heavy they hit all the right notes. A new track called Silent Souls was deliciously dark, while Cronus Chain, powered by Julia Owen’s superb drumming, also pummelled the spine as giant guitarist Oliver Hill leant over the front rows screaming in their faces - a fearsome sight.
Black Moth have an outstanding new record on the horizon, and this tour was about showing us their new wares.
Opener Istra is from that LP – Anatomical Venus – and the playful bassline sounds great behind Harriet Hyde’s deceptively smooth vocals.
They played some slamming tracks that further ramped up the power Grave Lines had brought. Sisters Of The Stone, which they dedicated to the large number of women in the crowd, has a thumping chorus which really stood out on the night. Wait for the instrumental interlude too.
These guys look like they have a lot of fun – their delicious riffs matched only by guitarist Jim Swainston’s luscious locks. And an increasingly drunk Grave Lines kept popping up to interact too. This added to the party atmosphere, from singing with them on stage to carrying bassist Dave Vachon off round the room.
They closed with fan favourite Honey Lung before even squeezing in Pig Man, the thumping closer off the new record that led them out as loudly as they entered.
Three bands who know how to craft a riff. Let’s hope they return soon.
