Ty Segall is a collision of Glam, Garage, Psychedelia and just plain guitar mayhem as the band slams their way through the wilderness of heavy Rock’n’roll.
Support act tonight is even more reductive. Semi-legendary Japanese thrash band Guitar Wolf are the grunt marines who clear the ground for the coming onslaught.
Focal point of the trio is guitarist Seiji, originally from Nagasaki district in Japan. It was in high school that he had an epiphany when hearing Link Wray’s Rumble, laying the seed in his mind for the development of the eventual Jet Rock’n’roll.
Certainly, he admires Joan Jett, but the moniker was an attempt to encapsulate the blast and roar of jet engines. As he has said repeatedly in interviews, he hates the easy listening and wants his sound to be explosive.
Not to be confused with the embryonic music that the Byrds ushered in when they were developing Folk Rock from early Dylan songs. One of their early monikers was the Jet Sound.
Jet Rock’n’roll is a hybrid of styles incorporating Surf, motorcycle and garage Punk and leans heavily on the sound and appearance of the Ramones.
The intro music from the sound desk is playing Cretin Hop and Rockaway Beach, as the trio take the stage, Seiji accompanied by Gotz on bass and Takuro on drums. All clad in distinctive leather jeans and jackets, their uniforms.
A wolf call from Seiji signals the start of the onslaught. The momentum is carried by the bass drone and precision drum attack. Embedded in all this it swings with Rock’n’roll energy.
The guitar of Seiji rips out relentless riffs with an economy of style. Amongst the constant counts of one-two-three-four, we hear some declamatory shouts of Utopia! Jungle Fever!
At one point the bass player holds up a large sign with the word Coelacanth. Do you know this fish says Seiji. They proceed to bash out a song which cribs a little from the intro to the Sex pistols Pretty Vacant, then proceeding to develop it into a good rage. A stately Punk epic.
At one point a young guy is pulled up onto the stage, and Seiji hands him his guitar whilst he takes a solo vocal. I’m not sure if that electric guitar is plugged in at this point, as all the music seems to be bass and drums.
Eventually after pogoing together, the ring-in leaps off the stage and gets carried around the room. Seiji also launches himself into the compliant crowd.
This took a leap of faith as whilst there was a decent number of people on the floor, it was not a sell-out crowd tonight. They were certainly enthusiastic enough.
With guitar back in the hands of the leader, he fires out rhythm riffs at speed behind the relentless engine room barrage.
They finish with Rock’n’roll as an invocation and some feral screaming. Wild heart-warming stuff.
Embracing the wild gift of Rock’n’roll is Ty Segall. A hard artist to categorise as he is a multi-instrumentalist, singer and songwriter, and producer.
Under his own moniker he has released at least 17 albums and EPs. He has recorded with a host of other band line-ups. Reading his extensive history, he touches on a wide palette of genres and styles. What is most consistent is Garage Rock, heavily laced with psychedelia, heavy rock, original Metal, Punk and New Wave, indie and alternative Rock, and let’s throw in Blues and Folk.
In recent times he has played all-acoustic sets. Explored the territories of artists like Dylan and similar.
Tonight, he is with regular musical partners. Emmett Kelly guitar, Mikal Cronin bass, Benjamin Boyce keyboards and possibly newest member Evan Burrows drums.
My first time to see him and I am intrigued by the advance publicity of the live experience of his shows.
He describes his teenage self as emotionally unstable, a very existential eighteen-year–old drunk, whose instability was temporarily mended by the escapism music provided him.
Launches with Feel (off Manipulator) and it is heavily fuzzed guitars which easily achieve lift-off. O so high/ Feel the creeps in the sky.
Candy Sam follows with squalls and shards of music faster than the early Stooges. The guitars are careening off, accompanied by the sounds of sirens.
Wonderful to experience a band committed to jamming on stage. Some echoes of Neil Young with Crazy Horse, and possibly even to the Grateful Dead and their absolute plethora of live recorded jams.
Segall plays a few from latest album Possession. Title track allows some melody to seep in.
Buildings begin with a psychedelic garage sound, as the percussion intro opens out with a guitar firestorm and pulls in elements of Glam and heavy doses of Sabbath style Metal. A foghorn sounds close to the end.
Chrome is a new song closest to classic Punk this evening. A bass drone supports a barrage of guitar shredding.
There is something visceral and uplifting about the way the molten riffs and meshed guitars on fast Garage Rock blasts like Glass, Girlfriend and Imaginary Person.
A softening of tone close to the conclusion with My Lady’s on Fire before they end the evening with guitars meshing into each other with the title track off Manipulator.
Seriously heavy and wild stuff from headliners Ty Segall and support act Guitar Wolf.
Rev. Orange Peel
Photography by Marc
Ty Segall
Guitar Wolf
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