February 07, 2002 at Rock City in Nottingham, England...reviewed by Steve Brown for UKbase
Only heard about half the set, but what I heard sounded pretty good. I'm not a great fan of women vocalists generally, but the lead singer's voice was only screechy (ala Poly Styrene ?) at times. At other points it was more gruff, which fitted the music better. These women are no lightweight Donnas soundalikes. More like a crashing blend of rock and roll in a Hellacopters/Detroit style (something in the Swedish water I guess), punk and a bit of early sounding Sub pop/Sympathy For The Record Industry grunge. Overall, a pretty impressive set and if you had ever wished L7 were more punk, then Sahara Hotnights will probably be for you.
Randy
I'm sorry, but this is not going to be an impartial review. This band were the main reason for me being here, as last year's Human Atom Bombs was one of my favourite albums of the year so I was really curious to see if they could match it live. No problem !!! From the opening Chicken Shack then straight into Addicts Of Communication, it wasn't like the album, it was better. With the clarity of the record but with extra live impact this 4 piece were absolutely fantastic. Playing most of the album plus a scattering of oldies and unreleased tracks this set was absolutely great. I don't think I'm going to see a more enjoyable band all year and watching Randy bought back memories of great gigs of yesteryear with their special blend of rock and roll, punk and eclectic uplifting lyrics. Yeah it reminded me of seeing the Clash and I can't give Randy any higher praise. References to Karl Marx, anarchism and refusing workplace conformism were refreshing and certainly caused some raised eyebrows, shrugs of shoulders and general what are they on about type of reaction, but by the end of the all too brief set ( if they had played for 2 hours it would still have been too brief !), the audience was suitably impressed to give them a rousing cheer. Anyway, set tracks that stood out were Punk Rock City, Karl Marx and History, Don't Need no Love, Human Atom Bombs (a worthy homage to Little Richard), If We Unite and a rousing finish of the Heebie Jeebies (Dial 911 ). Pity there was no Summer of Bros but you cant win em all.
11 out of 10 (yes they really impressed me that much)
The Hives
Well 4 months ago this lot couldn't sell out a free gig in Sheffield in a 3 /400 capacity venue and now a 1200/1400 capacity venue is sold out weeks in advance. So what's the difference ? ..mmm none really. Same band, same set. If you like the Hives you'll enjoy the live set. Personally I thought the music was better suited to a small club as the Hives make me think that this must have been like watching the Beatles in Hamburg in 62. The sound was disappointing as it should have filled and reverberated around Rock City but didn't, with the decibel level being way too low. So yeah it was OK and they played all the songs you would expect them to play but it dragged a bit. Perhaps the band are a bit worn out with all the hype and curiosity as it must be strange for a garage rock band to get so much interest. The between and during song banter and chat went on for too long so the energy level dropped too much. This type of music is best played fast and loose with very little let up (go and see the New Bomb Turks to see how it really should be done ) Most of the crowd loved it and they went down well but overall it seemed a bit lacklustre really ( but then again who could follow Randy anyway ?!!)
