‘Birth of Joy’ are like a three-piece version of ‘The Doors’ – but found on a “bad mood” day.
Gertjan Gutman does the whole Ray Manzarek bass thing on his keyboards, whilst Kevin Stunnenberg is the Krieger/Morrison character and Bob Hogenelst provides the honest fury of the drums together with some tempered backing vocals. The band play a fast paced psychedelic sixties style blues-rock – with the kind of fire, passion and artistry that you thought had departed from this world – and was last seen on the Right Bank in 1971. We enjoyed the band’s steamy set at the Dutch Impact Showcase at the Komedia on Friday.
First song “Teeny Bopping” screamed in like a hawk on the swoop – in a flurry of feathers, teeth and claws. But after the furious entry, robust wings of hurdy-gurdy organ and docile guitars tended to fold over the piece to create a protective layered shell. The “Teeny bopping …” voice in the chorus was reminiscent of Paul Weller. But we needed to imagine him with a shocked expression on his face – because his pants were on fire. This image best describes the true excitement of this number. It was brutal, fast and white-hot.
Later in the set, the band played ‘Motel Money A Way’ which has a “Bits and Pieces” sounding riff to it – and it briskly chugged along like an Arend-Eagle choo-puff that was clattering down the mangled tracks of drums that had been grooved out by Bob.
The poetic – yet jarring – organ shimmered and wallowed to Kevin’s vocals – as he sneered and smirked. The liquid guitar started to drip and bubble around those anxious rhythms, as the voltage and the tension increased dramatically. Then the voices became anxious. “Well that’s the motel money away…” He grimaced.
Concluding song ‘Make Things Happen’ had a daggering swagger of gleefully sinful drums and an organ that sounded like it was a snake on fire … writhing and squirming … until it contracted into a ball when the vocals came in and stretched healing hands over it. The guitar on this song was flexed to the point of painful contraction, and the keyboards bubbled and fumed under the intense heat. But – at heart- this was a song that celebrated the dexterity of pounding drums. That powerful, corrosive and totally sinful rhythm was wickedly ablaze.
– © Neil Mach May 2013 –
Link: https://www.facebook.com/birthofjoy
Birth of Joy were playing at The Great Escape Dutch Impact Show
Komedia Studio Bar, 44-47 Gardner Street. Brighton
RAW RAMP 