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| The Vaccines: Rock'N'Roll Stars. |
The Vaccines are set to be one of the biggest bands in 2011. Hailing from London with their insanely catchy brand of rock'n'roll that includes influences from various other musical styles including shoe-gaze, pop punk and surf rock, they are causing quite a stir among music fans, journalists and various other musical humans. And of course, every band starts somewhere, and The Vaccines are starting with a string of low key gigs at rather small venues. One of which, I was lucky to catch them play at; the Cornerhouse in Cambridge. I felt like one of the privileged few in Cambridge to see them on such a small stage (they are soon to be playing much bigger venues, I can just feel it in my bones!). The small crowd gathered in the humble pub are warmed up by thrilling support act Wildlife. They play through their set at an unrelenting pace so there is no room for banter, but at the same time, no need for it either. The songs more than speak for themselves. They conjure a feeling of unrest with their skattering guitar lines and obscure time signatures, all based around guitars, drums and vocals. Which leads us to the main event: The Vaccines. Moving swiftly onto the stage, each member looks quietly confident, apart from their lead singer. With a nervous look in his eye, he introduces, without needing to, his band. You can almost smell the excitement dripping off the walls then without further a do they burst into "Wreckin Bar (Ra Ra Ra)". This signature track made their name on the internet with it's excited, fit to burst pulse of pop and punk. From the beginning of the performance, the once nervous lead singer switches instantly into stage mode and rocks, shakes and stares his way through their songs. Playing fan favourites "If You Wanna" and "Blow It Up" alongside future fan favourites: "Wet Suit" and "Post Break Up Sex".
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| Freddie shows off his guitar skills while Justin checks up on their bassist. |
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| Justin wins centre stage back from Freddie, temporarily. |
They have a stage presence that makes you look their way without them trying. The key members for this effect are lead singer Justin and lead guitarist Freddie. They are constantly battling for centre stage dominance and they both have a rock'n'roll pep in their step. When Justin doesn't need to play guitar anymore he simply takes it off and strides around the stage with his mic in hand. At one point he jumps off stage into the crowd and starts play fighting with a very enthusiastic man with a pint. Highlight of the gig for the man with the pint. Then to end their night in true rock star style, Justin drops his mic at the end of the last song and walks straight out the venue. Freddie kicking up some mean feedback with his guitar. Then just like that, it's over. The crowd is unsure of what they have just witnessed, but they know it's going to be a part of music's future.
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| Freddie plays the guitar one handed. |
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| Wildlife warm up the Cornerhouse crowd. |
POWER CHORD LIVE RATING: P P P P
GIG HIGHLIGHT: When lead singer Justin started moshing with shouting, pint grasping punter in the crowd.
BEST PERFORMED SONG OF THE NIGHT: "Wet Suit" - The Vaccines
Want More From THE VACCINES? Check these websites out:
http://www.facebook.com/thevaccines
http://www.thevaccines.co.uk/
http://www.myspace.com/thevaccinesuk
Want EVEN MORE From The Vaccines? Check out the awesome video for "Wreckin Bar (Ra Ra Ra)" here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJ1TGlpCUKA
Photography and words by Jack Parker for Power Chord Music Blog
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