“And now I can’t wait for the Hi-Fi to come over next year…” That was my closing remark, when the Hi-Fi rhythm section Drew Parsons and Brian Nolan brought their own brand of powerpop dynamism to a scratch Lemonheads line-up, brilliantly backing up Evan Dando at Portsmouth’s gig 834 back in November 2011. Well, despite Drew’s belief that they’d be back over the following year, they made us wait a further 2, totalling 8 ¾ years since they’d last crossed the pond (gig 685, back in October 2005!); not that we’ve been counting or anything! As for what the boys have been up to since then… not much really, vocalist Stacy Jones and guitarist Jamie Arentzen have only been playing in the backing band (Stacy returning to the drum-stool to do so) of the world’s most talked-about pop star Miley Cyrus! Hey, it’s a (very lucrative, I’d imagine) paying gig, playing in arenas and stadiums, so fair play to you, boys!
In
fact we’ve got Miley to thank for this gig in a roundabout way, as her
“Bangerz” tour is currently in the UK, so with a gap between dates, the
boys decided to sort a gig of their own! I jumped
on tix as soon as they went on sale, before they (eventually) sold out,
and Tim and Tracey therefore picked Rach and myself up just after 5 for
the usual hit-and-miss run into London. Tim decided to drive all the
way in, which initially looked a shrewd shout
as we parked up just off Charlotte Street, about a 10 minute walk from
the venue. However a chunk of Oxford Street was cordoned off due to an
“incident”, necessitating an increasingly frustrating hike around the
rabbit warren backstreets behind Oxford Street,
eventually arriving at the venue ¾ hour after parking the car! Yikes!
So we missed the first support band, and headed to the bar for much
needed refreshment while main support The Hype Theory were on. They were
terrible – a clumsy, ham-fisted retread of oddly
dated sounding millennial Nu-punk, with an overpowering drummer, and a
female vocalist berating the crowd’s indifference.
Our
mood was however lifted by spotting Jamie in the crowd, so I tapped him
on the shoulder and we caught up awhile (well, as much as the onstage
noise would allow) with one of the nicest, most chilled
blokes it’s my pleasure to know. He eventually drifted off to get
ready, and we took a spot stage left, spotting a spectating Miley and
her entourage in the cordoned-off side-stage area next to us. Come to
see what her boys are capable of when they
really cut loose with the rock, no doubt…
Just
after 9.30, the Hi-Fi bounded enthusiastically onstage, as is their
wont, Stacy announcing, “we’re American Hi-Fi, we’re a rock’n’roll band
from Boston, Massachusetts,” (nice to see that’s not
changed!), then burst into the ringing opening riff to “Surround”, the
leadoff track to that classic first album, 13 years old and still
sounding fresh as a spring waterfall. That was it, the years fell away
and I was down the front, finding a surprisingly
easy pocket of space in which to rock out throughout, and being
acknowledged by Stacy and Drew midway through that first number. A
blistering “Scar” followed in short order, then “The Breakup Song”
cranked it up an even higher notch, and at this point they
were threatening to unmoor this revered venue from its’ foundations!
The
Hi-Fi were totally on fire tonight: always at their best when tightrope
walking right on the ragged edge, often threatening to tumble into
chaos but somehow managing to pull it all together,
they gave a perfect demonstration of that tonight, kinetic and
committed, sawing away at their guitars for all they’re worth. “Hi-Fi
Killer” was an incendiary yet tune-laden delight, before Stacy paused
for breath, stating, “it’s really special to be playing
for you guys tonight,” then announcing new material due in the Autumn
with new single “Allison” (“We’re putting it out after this show so
you’ll find it on the world wide web”), the turbocharged guitar riffs
proving them new apples haven’t fallen far from
the Hi-Fi tree of rock.
We
only got a couple of the new numbers tonight (“they’re harder to play!”
lamented Stacy), as the Hi-Fi delved increasingly into their classic
debut. Some wag called for “Wrecking Ball”, Stacy retorting
with, “I can play drums on that!” before “Another Perfect Day” required
a couple of starts (“oh, that’s the wrong chord!”) but was brilliantly
anthemic, Stacy introducing Jamie for the perfectly-delivered “All The
Young Dudes” middle-8 riff. “Blue Day” was
a loose-limbed itchy jump-about fest, Stacy admitting he’d tried to rip
off the Charlatans when he wrote this one! This startlingly swift set
rushed by in a breathless amphetamine blast of pace, power and
crushing
powerpop riffery, drawing towards a conclusion with the inevitable
“Flavor Of The Weak”, Stacy warning, “here’s one we’d better not fuck up,” but then totally nailing it, the crowd filling
in the middle 8 hook to Stacy’s delight. A roaring, soaring and
thoroughly absorbing “Wall Of Sound” ended a magnificent set, the boys
not missing a beat overall despite their 8 year absence.
Before
the encores, a tuning lull gave me an opportunity to congratulate the
onstage Stacy on his recent nuptials, drawing a, “well thank you David
Rose!” response from the man, and the story of
Jamie’s Best Man duties, which prompted a, “Speech! Speech!” chant
directed at the bemused guitarist. The encores were amazing, “The Art Of
Losing” an all-inclusive call to arms and possibly the best number on
show, delivered with a swagger and a grin. Final
number “Happy” was preceded by fulsome praise from an effusive Stacy,
who’d allegedly never expected this kind of response (“we thought if
maybe 30 or 40 people came along that’d be cool…”), and saluted the
enthusiastic crowd response at length at the end.
That
wasn’t it thought – it never is when there’s a Boston band involved!
Jamie, lovely guy that he is, dashed backstage to grab me a set-list (a
couple of the boys had forgotten to bring theirs
on, Stacy needing to refer to Drew’s throughout!), then we had pix and
conversations with him and Drew, also meeting Stacy’s lovely bride
Kristen and grabbing a quick word with the predictably-besieged frontman
before heading off, breathless and totally elated.
This was a pain to get to, but totally worth it, a resurrection of
sorts for one of the most dynamic and incendiary live acts it’s been my
privilege ever to see “live”. Brilliant though The Hold Steady were on
Monday, I reckon this even topped that, and might
just end up being my Gig of the Year. Yup, there, I said it. And now I
can’t wait for the Hi-Fi to come back over again… when the album is out!
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