Raveonettes - Rough Trade East, London, 6/10/2009

  by Anthony Strutt

published: 20 / 10 / 2009

intro

At a surprise gig at Rough Trade East to promote their new album, 'In and Out of Control', Anthony Strutt watches garage rock duo the Raveonettes play a short, but perfect acoustic set

The day after the release of their new album, 'In and Out of of Control', the Raveonettes play a surprise acoustic set at Rough Trade East. It wasn't announced until two days before, but needless to say this made me a very happy man indeed. I arrive early, buy the album, get it signed and am the only one there to watch them do the soundcheck, which is an honour. Both Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo are heavily jetlagged. They, however, do a video interview before the set. Later on that night they will do as well an album launch DJ set at the Buffalo Bar. The set, which starts early at 6.30 p.m. sharp, is very short with just Sune and Sharin on vocals and both on acoustic guitars. It lasts a mere eighteen minutes, but eighteen minutes with both Sune and Sharin is heaven to my eyes and ears. They open with 'Bang', which also opens the new album and is one side of their new double A-sided single. This is a sugar sweet summertime song, but classic Raveonettes and just perfect. Their second song is 'Gone Forever', which is also the second track on the album. This has a slow feel of their earlier single, 'Love in a Trash Can'. The next song, which Sahrin introduces, is a song called 'Oh, I Buried You Today, which is a very short love song for a departed lover. Sune introduces the fourth song by saying "This is a statement." 'Boys who Rape Should All be Destroyed' is a song about a gang rape,and, while the band's most political song to date, sung by Sharin is again sugar sweet and a song to fall in love with. Sharin says, "We are going to do an old song now." All of two years old, it is 'Dead Sound', their second 7 inch single from their last album 'Lust! Lust! Lust!', which even in its stripped down form is very fast and a pure pop number. Sune introduces the last song of this ever so short set, and plugs the album. The band end the set with 'Last Dance' which is the other side of the latest single and again about a departed lover. It is sung as a duet and brings this perfect acoustic set to plug what is my album of the year to an excellent close.

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