Riscas
The Sunflower Lounge
Review by Jordan Moores
Sunday night (12/01/20) at the Sunflower Lounge was a gig not to miss, with music from Souki, 11 57, Flares and Riscas. Now I had only seen one of these bands before unfortunately, but now I want to see them all again. Not just to see the great acts again, but also so I can get the song names right next time (apologies if I got them wrong).
Souki
Souki started off the proceedings with a song called ‘Peach’, unfortunately I’m not sure of the song names throughout the gig due to a quiet mic and me maybe not hearing them say it. ‘Peach’ had a good bass line in it and a good guitar solo. A song they didn’t introduce kicked off with a funky bass line, and towards the middle had a guitar solo that lasted the rest of the song. ‘6/8’ was next on the set which had this chilled out indie rock sound with both a good guitar and bass line keeping it interesting.
‘C3P0’ started with a very strong bass line which was captivating. Another song I didn’t hear the name of was a very vocal based song, which was hard to hear due to a mic being quite low in the mix.
Their last song didn’t have a name yet, not one that I missed this time! It had a long ascending tense sounding drum, guitar and bass line, which then lead into a calmer break down. Unfortunately this song and set ended on a sour note as they didn’t seem fully coordinated towards the end.
I’ve seen Souki play once before, and this was a definite improvement since then, they had a better stage presence and more energy than before. Despite the microphone issues they had they were all very talented musicians. Despite being the first act and people still arriving they helped the crowd get going for the rest of the evening.
11 57
11 57 started their set with a song called ‘Talk’; a perfect track to start with. They jumped straight into it with lots of energy which had the crowd moving already. They moved onto ‘Wrong’ next which had a good vocal line in it, also a soloing section where all three members were playing off each others part.
‘Beware The Bear’ started with a good bass line walking up and down with a backing of an ambient guitar which had some nice licks in it. This lead up to a heavy break down with a solo that passed between the three. Their next song is currently unnamed as it’s new. It had a rhythmic bass line that got the crowd moving and had a chorus they could chant back.
‘Would I Lose’ starts off with a bass line that the guitar links back into with catchy riffs. Their last song I missed the name of completely, but it followed straight in with some good riffs off the guitar and the drums. A heavy drum solo leading into a fake out ending was a strong way to end their set.
11 57 have only been around since August and are very talented, doing coordinated stops, solos, and have a great stage presence. This three piece all seemed like great friends, which made their set better than otherwise. They looked like they were there having fun which passed onto the audience for sure.
Flares
Flares opening track was a great start to their set but sadly I missed the song name, but it was a great listen for sure, good riffs and vocals. ‘Tunnel Vision’ followed; it had a guitar riff lead straight in from the last song. There was a break down which set the crowd off, moshing and even a crowd surfer. The intro to their next song, ‘Stuck’, had these coordinated stops with a controlled solo. Ending with a fake out and one last chorus was a good way to keep the crowd enthralled.
‘Parma Violet’ had a funky riff going which incorporated stops which were all in-sync, the drumming stood out in this song. Not stopping, ‘Keep It’ started off with a strong guitar riff and back and forth vocals from the two singers. The song built up to a climatic finish, but the guitar and drums lead straight into the next song – a cover of ‘Never Getting Back Together’ by Taylor Swift. The bass player swapped with the singer for this track and this version was much more rockier and heavier than the original but the crowd were still singing it straight back at them.
This was followed with ‘Over There’ which seemed to have some guitar loops going through, building up the riff during the verses. ‘Lightning’ was their last song of their set which kicked off with some strong drum and guitar riffs and with harmonies from the singers. During the build up to the chorus they had a clapping section for the crowd. Then to finish it off there was a drum and guitar solo which was incredible, and topping it all off was a comedic lick tight at the end
Flares had a great feel on the stage, they had a command of the crowd who didn’t stop dancing once throughout their set. The venue was alive from this four piece due to great music and the crowd. Very talented members all round, however the drummer and guitarist stood out as they never seemed to stop, they were always linking one song to the next. Another band on the list to see again.
Riscas
The opening track of Riscas’ set was another song name missed… The song had a great riff going through it with good vocals on top. The drums lead well in to the chorus. ‘Calypso’ followed with a strong drum beat leading into the two guitarists riffing off of each other.
‘Panic Like Tom’ had a fast guitar riff to start things off, with the guitarist jumping off his amp! That definitely got the crowd raring to go. After that they played ‘Dance’, which had another good start from the drums but also benefited from having both guitarists doing different riffs working off each other. There was a funky beat going throughout which made people, me at least, want to ‘dance’. ‘Complex’ followed, which straight away started with a guitar and drum solo. Then towards the end both guitarists started soloing which lasted through the final chorus and to the end of the song.
‘Talk Your Mind’ had a really good bass line that was getting people moving. There was a big build up that lead into a guitar solo which then went into the chorus. With a break down afterwards, they laid their instruments down signalling the end of their set… Of course, they had an encore prepared and ready.
‘Hide Away’ started off initially well, with a good guitar riff and a leading drum line, but something must have happened to the other guitar as it didn’t work. The rest of the band had a little jam whilst the guitar problems got fixed. The song then sounded great, two competing guitar riffs, good drum beat, and an upbeat chorus left a good feeling after an unfortunate start to the song.
Riscas had the crowd going from the moment they started playing. Every member was excellent and no-one held anything back. When they were in full swing the energy on the stage was great, you could tell they were all there having fun. The singer was joking around between songs which is always a crowd pleaser. It’s always impressive seeing two guitarists doing different things but they linked up well and it sounded great. All in all, a great set and an amazing way to finish a class night.