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You’re young, and hell, we’d like to see the ID that
got you past the gargoyle heavies on the door. Then
again, looking at some of the clientele cowering in
black in the shadows by the bar maybe we’re just getting
old. You are supporting The Beatings, the very
latest inventees of a scene that’s far from running
out of steam for churning them out with that traditional
panache. And attracting an audience who read about punk
in picture books and want a piece of the recycled action
(so admittedly better for the environment, which can
only be a good thing) so long as it’s got a label on
and there’s none of that nasty jumping about involved.
You’re going to have your work cut out. Especially when
you’re drawing on influences 15 years too late for flavour
of the month too. You are Kinesis, but despite
not being The Beatings or any shade thereof, you play
like maybe you’ll make a difference. Just maybe. And
that being different in itself has every chance of making
the world of difference.
There was a time when being a band with an agenda would
merely make you a drop in an ocean, part of the collective
cloth (remember the early 90s, remember everyone from
Billy Bragg to RATM to PWEI to Sinead O’Connor to Blaggars
ITA to The-bloody-Levellers and beyond?). But how the
table’s choice of covering turns. And for that reason
Kinesis seem at the very least worthy, if not quite
important. Their irritated collision of grunge’s harder
edges and modern vigour makes you crave for them to
take that next step and actually be important. But if
there’s a problem it’s that they still look like they’re
at the world’s behest, when that should be the other
way around.
They are tighter and meaner than when we first saw them,
but in ways it seems like being part of the apathetic
generation they’re rallying against has rubbed off on
them to some extent. They want us to listen but won’t
yet make us. Their early Nirvana / mid Pumpkins / old
Idlewild / good Llama Farmers / straight-faced Pixies
musical policy statement is a spiky enough cocktail
for the ears, but we’re left waiting for them to force
it down our throats. Forthcoming single ‘Billboard Beauty’,
the chunky ‘Everything Destroys Itself’ and especially
a toxic ‘…And They Obey’ sparkle like nuclear fused
sound and long-range-vision. But playing to this generation
as they are, they’ll probably be needing more than brilliant
t-shirt slogans and songs durable enough to be hummed
or moshed if they want to be more than a fashion statement
for disenfranchised adolescents. If this was just fun,
there would be no problem, only they are capable of
so much more. Especially when there’s so much in front
of them to get their hackles up. And it doesn’t seem
such a big step, let’s hope they can take it.
James Berry for Crud Magazine© 2002
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| 08/02 Beachwood Sparks Interview
08/02 Coldplay - A Rush Of Blood To The Head
08/02 Goldrush - Don't Bring Me Down
08/02 Montgolfier Brothers Interview
08/02 Wilco - Interview - Jeff Tweedy
09/02 Apples In Stero Interview
09/02 Audio Vent Interview - Band Of Brothers
09/02 Beck - Sea Change Listening Party
09/02 Bon Jovi - Everyday
09/02 Peter Gabriel - UP - Signal To Noise Ratio
09/02 Ikara Colt - Live - 100 Club, London
09/02 Joy Zipper - Ron
09/02 Kathryn Williams - No One Takes You Home
09/02 Carling Weekend Leeds Festival
09/02 Noise Therapy - Interview - Ron Thiessen
09/02 Splender Interview
10/02 Dragpipe Interview
10/02 Foo Fighters - One By One
10/02 Goldrush - Live - Camden, Dingwalls
10/02 Hell Is For Heroes - Live - Brixton Academy , London
|  | 10/02 Jetplane Landing - Live - Grage , London
10/02 Kinesis - Live - Grage , London
10/02 Ladytron - Seveteen
10/02 Longwave - Live - Water Rats, London
10/02 My Computer - Live - Camden Monarch, London
10/02 Polyphonic Spree - Tour Dates
10/02 Silvertide Interview
10/02 Simian - Live - Bethnal Green Working Men's Club, London
10/02 System of A Down - Steal This Album
10/02 Talib Kweli - Quality
12/02 A - Live - Brixton Academy, London
12/02 Audio Bullys - We Don't Care
12/02 Aurelius 7 Interview
12/02 Burning Brides Interview
12/02 D4 - Live - Mean Fiddler, London
12/02 Kickrollers
12/02 Top Ten Albums 2002
January 2001
July - August 2001
September - October 2001
November - December 2001
January - March 2002
April - July 2002
August - December 2002 | |
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