They may be Made Violent, and this was a riot of a gig, but the only way anyone was going to get hurt was simply from rocking too hard. The Old Blue Last won’t see too many young and hungry hotshots tear the stage up as the Buffalo, NY trio did on their UK debut.
From the moment singer and bassist Joe White begins proceedings by beckoning the crowd to surge towards the stage, there is no doubting just how pumped for the occasion Made Violent are. One night in London before the prying eyes of observers from all factions of the industry; one night to make a name for themselves on British soil; one night to go HAM.
There’s no better way to endear yourselves to an anticipant foreign audience than to cover one of its most beloved rock acts of all time. The boys are bang on point with their killer take on vintage Kinks number ‘All Day And All Of The Night’, with White suavely serenading their newfound fans, guitarist Rob Romano gazing upward and clearly in his element, and drummer Justin Acee bashing the skins at a canter despite battling for vision through his sweat-heavy jungle of hair.
It is, however, their own energy-loaded armoury of material that will have won Made Violent the real plaudits on their maiden voyage outside the US. Set closer ‘Wasted Days’ was the band’s first serious venture and the one that set in motion the journey that ultimately led to London, where it goes down a treat with its jangling main riff and anthemic chorus: “Talking to myself but no one’s ever listening, no I don’t wanna change, no I won’t do anything”. It is complemented in style by the likes of Cage The Elephant soundalike ‘Inside Out’ and the raucous, vehemently-chorused recent single ‘You Had It Easy’.
Made Violent are yet another peppy emerging player in the renaissance of undeniably cool stateside guitar music that’s currently blazing a trail on both sides of the Atlantic. Their releases to date have drawn in a wide array of admirers and they’re adroitly negotiating the acid test of hacking it live. As long as they use this milestone moment as a springboard to the next level – they must – it won’t be too long before these shores are once again left consumed by the not-at-all unwelcome stench of Buffalo rock ‘n’ roll.
Tom Hancock
@_TomHancock