Miscellaneous - 93 Feet East, London, 17/9/2003

  by Olga Sladeckova

published: 10 / 10 / 2003

intro

At an evening put together by the Bella Union label to showcase three of their newest bands, Olga Sladeckova enjoys strong performances from Jetscreamer, Duke Spirit and Bikini Atoll, the first of whom were making their London debut

Connection of Beauty - that is the literal translation of the name of the London based record label Bella Union and also the idea behind the the label - connecting beautiful music. On the 17th September I have the chance to witness one of these connections at the London music venue, 93 Feet East. The Denton, Austin based band Jetscreamer, Bella Union's latest signing ; Duke Spirit, whose new record has been produced by Bella Union boss Simon Raymonde, and Bikini Atoll, whose debut album is going to be released on Bella Union next year, all appear on the line-up. 93 Feet East is situated in East London on Brick Lane, a street which has become also known for its countless restaurants, and also more recently for giving the title to the acclaimed author' Monica Ali's recent Booker Prize nominated novel. On the night in question I run down the street ignoring all those resaurants and waitresses begging for a visit. When I finally manage to get to the venue it's already after 8:30 and I can hear the first band, Bikini Atoll, halfway through their set playing an instrumental song  'Shark Requiem'. Fans down the front copy the magnetic tune with their perfectly accurate moves. I quickly cut my way through the crowd to get a good view of the stage from one side of the concert hall. Viva, the band's keyboardist and guitarist, is hitting the keys with great passion. Bastian, the bass guitarist, strums his guitar and helplessly gives into the music and, as far as his guitar allows him, dances. One of the strengths of the band is also singer and guitarist Gideon's voice which stands out with each subnsequent song. Duke Spirit are on next. The band have quite a punky sound compared to Bikini Atoll. I have not seen them before, but it is very easy to get into their music. Red and green lighting flash on the band livening up the music,while the band's singer Liela matches this with her powerful voice. It's nearly 10 and the stage is being set up for the last act of tonight ,Jetscreamer. While waiting the DJ treats us to a few quietr country songs which are greeted with appreciation, especially by a young couple standing right in front of me who use them as the opportunity for a private moment. The Jetscreamer trio comes on stage a few minutes later. Even though it's their first appearance in London they are treated to generous applause. Jetscreamer are loud and there is definitely a strong connection between their music and the sound that a jet plane makes. 20 minutes into their set William Kapinos, the singer and guitarist, wonders how much time they have left to play. From the reaction of the audience to this question it is obvious that it will be a long time before anyone wants Jetscreamer to finish, and so they fly into another song. If you listen to their music with your eyes closed you might think there might be whole bunch of musicians on the stage, instead of jsut three to produce such rich and energizing music. The set and the whole night finally finishes ar about 10:45. What a great night I think walking back to the tube station. Sometimes when you connect things together they don't fit quite right ,but tonight there definitely was a great spark between the 3 bands and no doubt that was "bella union". The first two photos that accompany this article were taken by Matthew Willams

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