Aside from problems due to me breaking my phone on Saturday, we had no problems getting to the gig at all for a change.
Before I talk about the music, I just want to mention how disappointing the 3OH!3 merch was. I’ve seen some pretty good 3OH!3 tshirts online, but all we had at the gig that was remotely interesting was the “This is a 3OH!3 shirt”.
First up, Bamboo Shoots. I’ve never heard of them before, so this was all new to me. They’ve supported a wide range of bands the likes of Soulja Boy and the Ordinary Boys, so no clues there as to their sound.
When they started playing, it became more clear. They’re a sort of indie rock band with some synth backing.
Apparently they’re South Asian influenced, but I didn’t hear anything to suggest that at the time.
I was impressed by the talent of the band, the synth guy switching to bass mid-set and the keyboardist taking over on the bongos at times. Their songs are a little slower than I would have expected, considering the line up, but definitely catchy and an auditory treat.
Mid way through their set, out came what I can only describe as an Optimus Prime streaker, and made his way around the stage and the crowd. I think it was one of the 3OH!3 guys, and it got plenty of interest and a bit of a laugh. People seemed most interested in their cover of “I Got A Feeling” by the Black Eyed Peas. I’m not really a fan of the song, it gets overplayed on the radio and I’m frankly sick of it, but aside from that, they did it quite well.
Keep an eye out for these guys. My favourite track of theirs was “Wrong All Along“, check it out.
Next up was a DJ set from Sean Smith, he sometimes does his set under the name of DRTY LVE. For those who don’t know, he’s the singer from The Blackout. I wasn’t sure what to expect, I’ve not heard of him doing a DJ set before. He’s a pretty good house DJ.
You could feel the bass moving you around the room when he threw a on remix of Bonkers by Dizzee Rascal. His choice of songs may have left a lot to be desired however, Circus by Britney and even Living on a Prayer had people singing along, but I’m not sure why, and noone seemed to care for Miami by LMFAO. My highlight of his set was I’m on a Boat by the Lonely Island, and I think everyone else liked it as much as I did.
If I heard he was playing another set locally, I would definitely head along to check it out, but then again, that’s my kinda thing. Bass so strong you could give it a name and dress it up, and a familiar tune behind it.
He got everyone hyped, ready for 3OH!3, and that was a job well done.
After a few minutes of setting up their gear, it’s time for the headliners, 3OH!3. On comes the opening synth beats to Punkbitch. The room filled up and the crowd went pretty crazy, and with good reason. A few moments later, out come the guys. There’s a laptop set up just off stage on one side, next to a guy on a keyboard, facing a door (I guess he’s not famous enough to see the crowd) and a drummer at the back. I didn’t expect to see any of it played live, but the nature of their set was improved greatly by having those guys there.
Nate seemed to deal with the laptop, and Sean with entertaining the crowd. At one point Sean was wearing a thong made of glowsticks thrown on stage, and he was wearing a girls cardigan that someone evidentially didn’t want.
They both had more energy throughout the entire set than I’ve seen at a gig in a long while. Requests to clap along or throw up what looked like 3OH!3’s very own gang signs were met with universal obedience, as was “I want to see everyone in the room jumping”. No easy feat for of a crowd of apathetic youngsters.
One of the favourites was Startrukk, which is their latest single with Katy Perry. Unfortunately she wasn’t there, but that did mean we were treated to the–in my opinion, better–album version of the song. Don’t Trust Me was saved for the encore, and received a massive sing-along effort from everyone. Thus ended my favourite gig of the last 6 months.
If you havn’t heard of 3OH!3, where the hell have you been? They’ve got great electro beats and catchy hooks. I still don’t know what genre they are, but who needs a genre these days anyway.
Roll on their next set of dates.
One Comment
have to agree with you on most points here. Bamboo Shoots seemed to be more of a filler act, and didn’t seem somehow to match the vibe of the night, who knows, maybe they just have some seriously good management. Wasn’t Optimus Prime during Sean’s set? The guy in the suit was his younger brother Jay, earlier and later found at the merch booth. Definitely have to agree on the lack of response to Miami by LMFAO, Sean quite possibly became one of my favourite people for playing that song, the crowd however seemed far too ‘what the hell’ to realise how amazing a track it is. I’m definitely a LMFAO fan. Finally 3OH!3. It was so worth the wait to see them, I’ve been a fan since I first heard of them being on the Warped Tour line-up a couple years ago. When I tried to see them at Leeds Festival the tent was packed out with one-song-only fans, so it was quite devastating that I couldn’t even get in, and instead had to settle for peering over crowds of people into the steamy abyss. Manchester definitely made up for it, especially with the fact this time around I said screw it, and went to the back to get crazy and dance around and have fun. Agreed, one of the best shows I went to in a while.