The Kills.W/ The XX Teens.
Cambridge Junction.
WEDNESDAY 19TH NOVEMBER 2008.
When the XX Teens took to the stage I was a bit apprehensive as to what their performance was going to be like. They all just seemed to arrive onstage and just stand there. The guitarist/vocalist stared at me and looked me up and down for what seemed like an age. I think it was just because I was stood there pen and pad in hand that just made me stand out of the crowd, but it made me feel so nervous!
I personally didn’t think that I was going to like them that much because I had only heard of a few songs that they’d written before the gig, but it turned out that they weren’t actually that bad. Well they were a bit odd, but once you saw past that, an
d the fact that they were all dressed like blues brothers rejects, you could kind of get into it that bit better.
d the fact that they were all dressed like blues brothers rejects, you could kind of get into it that bit better.I liked how they sounded and they were definitely not what I had anticipated onstage from what I had heard from listening at home. You could tell from the offset that this band were not your normal average experimental rock band- it takes a seriously “special” group of people to be able to stand on stage for five minutes like statues then burst into a mental dance that made the lead guitarist look so much like an Egyptian/pigeon. (Seriously, I don’t make this stuff up.)
One thing that I noticed about the band was that they never really took the time out to introduce themselves properly. Maybe they had just expected people to know who they were and what they were about- I don’t know. The bands overall performance was a good one. The vocal and instrumental quality was top notch! I’d say that they had the same vocal styling as The Killers, (well I thought so, even if some people disagree) but taken out of their normal environment and dumped in a completely different genre. You could also hear the heavy influence from the velvet underground come through in a lot of their songs.
The crowd seemed to like The XX teens, but from what I could see, there wasn’t that much movement coming from my side of the barrier! I think I would say that the XX Teens were a great choice of support for The Kills, and are also just one of those bands that you either love, or hate. Except if you’re me of course because I was indifferent to both!
It was then the turn of The Kills to grace us with their presence. The set started off just as I would have expected, nothing out of the ordinary but brilliant nonetheless! Things only really got going when they played the song “Sour Cherry”.
The biggest pull factor about The Kills is that they don’t try to be anything that they know they aren’t or try to reach out to everybody. I think they’re one 
of those bands that just make music because they like it- rather than doing it because people like it, for them it’s just an added bonus. The Kills are TOTALLY original and I’ve heard nobody like them before. While I was there I couldn’t help but like them so much more, the whole performance just added to their appeal. I know I seem to say this about every band I see lately but, their sound is so much more crisp when they play live!
of those bands that just make music because they like it- rather than doing it because people like it, for them it’s just an added bonus. The Kills are TOTALLY original and I’ve heard nobody like them before. While I was there I couldn’t help but like them so much more, the whole performance just added to their appeal. I know I seem to say this about every band I see lately but, their sound is so much more crisp when they play live!The band had an amazing stage presence too! I was gob smacked. I was confused at first as to why the whole stage got cleared, because there were only two of them- but I found after the third song in the set there was far more energy and movement in the audience. People were only just starting to get into it! Especially one man that resembled Rolf Harris, he was busting some serious moves!
The Kills had such an amazing stage presence too! I couldn’t help but think that I was being drawn in and completely hypnotized by what they were doing. At the start of their set I didn’t really understand why the whole stage had been cleared for TWO people- but after a few songs I could really see why. Jamie Hince, or “Hotel”, as he is sometimes known as, remained relatively stationary throughout a majority of the set. This was completely contradicted in the performance from Alison Mosshart, or “VV”. she was happily moving, dancing and throwing herself about the stage, whilst occasionally stopping to hold a pose for the six photographers that found themselves constantly battling each other for a good shot. I must say though, one particular guy had a height advantage over all of them! There was a definite hint of sexuality about Mosshart. The way she dressed, the way she dance and the way she sang.
I do think though that sexuality is something that The Kills incorporate so well into both their sound and their performance. They sounded raw, rocky, dirty and dare I say it… sexy. I loved it. I think they’re everything you expect a signed band not to be, which in turn makes them BRILLIANT. They’re not prim and proper, they’re edgy, sharp and different, and RETRO. (only they could manage to record a whole album using a Moog Synthesiser! They‘re also pretty different to many of the indie bands signed to their label Domino Records, Arctic Monkeys, Franz Ferdinand Eugene McGuinness and Lightspeed Champion.)The Kills managed to pull off a great performance overall and I’d say that everything was of top quality as I had previously anticipated. It’s good worth going to see them live because you WILL NOT, ever, experience anything like it! I promise!
Words By Carleanne Gwen O'Donoghue
Photographs By SiZe Photography
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