Live in Manila ● Sept. 22, 2012 ●SM North Sky Dome
Rising from the fevered hotbed of Sydney,
Australia’s underground hardcore scene, boy meets girl.
Try to keep up – the story goes something
like this…
Guitarist Whakaio Taahi and his compadre
bass player, Cameron Adler, needed a frontman for a rock project. Scrap that.
Frontwoman. Enter ing̩nue-with-attitude, Jenna McDougall Рas soon as the
sixteen-year-old songstress’ soaring contralto and sweet strains took the mic
to their songs, something clicked. Already onboard, rhythm axeman Jake Hardy
and new recruit, drummer Matt Best – a childhood buddy of Whakaio’s. One jam
later, the writing was on the wall. Tonight Alive were up and running, pedal to
the metal.
The band stepped up, and fast. Songs
honed, stagecraft already a dead cert, they entered Sydney’s subterranean
circuit of metalcore and heavy bands, playing their own brand of
catchy-as-all-hell pop-punk… and promptly took the scene by storm, developing a
rabid young fanbase in thrall to the band’s ebullient, fist-pumping anthemery,
arena-sized hooks and high-voltage live performances.
Right from word-go, it was clear Tonight
Alive were going somewhere.
A year on, courted by labels and
management secured, with two stellar EPs (‘All Shapes & Disguises’ and ‘Consider
This’) under their belts, a demo of Tonight Alive’s new material landed on
producer-extraordinaire Mark Trombino’s (Blink 182, Jimmy Eat World, The
Starting Line) desk. He rang the band immediately, wanting in.
“For him to contact us, and say he was
interested, was a big deal,” says Jenna, now 19. “We couldn’t believe he’d put
himself out like that. He’s amazing. Mark created the albums we all grew up
listening to – the albums that launched the careers of all these great bands.
Recorded at LA’s infamous NRG Studios
over two months, Trombino’s personal interest in the project played out in
other fortuitous ways. “Nothing was left to editing or over Pro-Tooling,” notes
Whakaio. “Jenna sang every line until it was right. I played every guitar part.
The drum sound is natural and not heavily sampled. There was no copy-pasting.
That was really important to us, as well as Mark. That it sound real. Natural.”
“It was great because it made us really
step up as musicians,” says Jenna. “I know I definitely came back from the
experience a better singer.”
As the charging powerchords, chiming
verseline and rattlesnake high-hats of Breaking & Entering kick off proceedings, Tonight Alive
make their intent known with this instant torch song. Like serving up straight
red cordial shots to a bunch of Ritalin-deprived delinquents. Like scooping up
a surging circle-pit and slamdunking into a kids’ jumping castle. Like a surly
prom queen setting her school afire as the So-Cal styled band plays on, What
Are You So Scared Of? is a veritable barnstormer of a debut album. Bouncey,
infectious and thrilling.
Cue the mosh-happy shout-a-long of Starlight,
the sheer infectious fun of Sure as Hell and the sugar-rush of songs like To
Die For and the title track. Lending both cred and sporting their influences on
their sleeve.
But there’s also gravitas to match
Tonight Alive’s gusto and good times – the balls-out heaviness of Listening, the
acoustic-shaded power ballad Safe and Sound, and one of the album’s best
tracks, Let It Land, all showcase a band with serious songwriting chutzpah. Meanwhile,
the moving closer, Amelia, is Jenna’s paean to a girlhood friend who passed
away aged 16, and packs one powerful emotional punch.
What really lifts Tonight Alive above
another female-fronted pop-rock band is their muscular musicality, a deft sense
of dynamic, a way of shifting seamlessly from the big riffs and breakdowns, to
allow space and the sensibility of Jenna’s sweetly sung melodies to shine
through.
The hardcore heritage has set them in
good stead – these kids have some bad-ass chops. Underpinned by Best’s
impassioned, athletic drumming, the mercurial undertow of Adler’s tasteful
basswork and Hardy’s meat ’n’ potato riffery, Whakaio lays down the sort of
colour, texture and zinging, adrenalizing leadlines that sing like a wire
fenceline being drawn taut.
The band’s grounded approach has added to
their groundswell appeal. “We started off playing youth centre’s,” says
Whakaio. “And so we all feel like we have a personal connection to so many
people who come to our shows. I know that sounds clichéd, but it’s true – it’s
almost like we’re friends with all of them. We make a point of going out after
a gig, making contact with the fans, thanking them, keeping them informed.”
What Are You So Scared Of? is distributed
by Ivory Music & Video, the exclusive licensee of Sony Music in the
Philippines.
Ticket
Prices:
P2000
(Regular Price)
Tickets
available at SM Tickets or call 470-2222
P1000
(For Bazooka Rocks Ticket Holders) These Tickets can only be purchased at the
venue on show day or directly from Pulp Live World HQ, Call 727-4957/722-9622
