7 Months - The Room, Sheffield, 23/5/2005

  by Helen Tipping

published: 17 / 5 / 2005

intro

Queen Adreena is the latest project of former Daisy Chainsaw stars Katie Jane Garside and Crispin Gray. In the cramped surroundings of Sheffield's The Room, Helen Tipping finds that they have lost little of their ferocious edge

We arrived to find The Room heaving, which for a Monday night in Sheffield is pretty amazing and testimony to Queen Adreena's popularity.    The crowd were a mixture of new fans and those who have stuck with Katie Jane Garside and Crispin Gray since they were in Daisy Chainsaw back in the days of grunge.  Katie Jane's vocals, at one moment little lost girl, the next screaming harpy, together with the tribal drumming sound have a gothic appeal.  I went expecting a good show, but, whether I got one or not, I'm not entirely sure, as The Room has a very low stage and ceiling, and I could only just see the band members between the lighting rig and the top of the taller people's heads.  The only time I got a decent view was when Katie Jane stood on her chair to sing and then she couldn't stand upright, but had to crouch down due to the lowness of the ceiling, which she could touch as she stood on the floor.  So if you weren't at the front, or very tall, it's not a brilliant venue to see a band, particularly when they are worth seeing. I can't complain about the sound though which was pretty good.    Queen Adreena are an energetic band to watch. Katie Jane throws herself around the stage, from one side to the other, and Crispin has the odd run around, possibly trying to escape the sometimes violent attentions of Katie Jane who, although small and slightly built, has a certain ferocity about her. As she writhes about the stage, and pulls her clothes around, she looks like a woman possessed.   The last time I saw Queen Adreena, she looked as though she would strangle herself with the microphone cord, and made several attacks on Crispin. This time there was only one attack on him, which she happened when she threw her chair at him during the penultimate song. She seemed a bit more sober than the previous time though she was still swigging her way through a bottle of wine onstage.  A friend of mine described them as "disturbing", but really you've got to remember that it's an act, be it one that the band put their all into physically and emotionally, a form of artistic expression and that's the point of Queen Adreena really - they are one of those bands that are far better live than on CD as they are about more than just lyrics and music. Her performance, and that of the rest of the band, bring life and meaning to the songs . 

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