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Posted by Ronald on April 29th, 2008 at 05:51 pm

Yes it is London Calling. A festival that takes place twice a year with new and upcoming britpop bands from the UK or elsewhere. Bands like Franz Ferdinand, Kaiser Chiefs, Bloc Party, Editors played the festival in earlier editions so it proves to have a nose for a next generation of exciting bands that will dominate the charts in the future. So what would this edition bring us?

London Calling festival at Paradiso Amsterdam 26 April 2008

Too bad that in my opinion the most exciting generation was a few years back. And traditionally a couple of generations after that it’s hard to find new and exciting bands in the big pile of copycats. Most bands sound like a poor substitute to the original successful band. So I was very curious what this festival would bring. It is a two day festival but I could only attend the second day. Judging from the commentaries on the internet the first day however promised to have the most exciting bands: Exile Parade, The Metros, Florence And The Machine, Make Model, Blood Red Shoes,Dead Kids, Ipso Facto, Get Shakes , Mystery Jets, The Ting Tings, Baltic Fleet, The Answering Machine. The second day hosted: Cage the Elephant, Joe Lean and The Jing Jang Jong, The Rascals, Let’s Wrestle, Broken Records, Late Of The Pier, Get Cape Wear Cape Fly, Video Nasties, One Night Only, Pete and The Pirates, Johnny Foreigner, Friendly Fires.

I’ll try to recall what I’ve seen which won’t be easy since the night gets kind of blurry at the end (I wonder why Mr. Heineken?). I missed the first couple of bands so I can’t tell you anything about Cage the Elephant, Let’s Wrestle or Pete and The Pirates.

Get Cape Wear Cape Fly

Singer with guitar, a drum player and an Apple MacBook. It’s not the most dynamic performance I’ve seen. It’s not bad but the songs are mostly quite slow making the performance a bit long-winded. Most of the arrangements are in the computer. Maybe if they would have more musicians on stage it would be more exciting to watch. Like the name though.

One Night Only

5 young guys that look a bit roughed up playing indie rock. I wonder where I’ve seen that before? It’s not bad it’s just not really new. Not every band has to be the next best thing or change music history. But this one just doesn’t stick out. They do put a lot of effort in their performance so in the end it was fun to watch and it wouldn’t surprise me if they actually will make it to the main stage of every festival in a couple of years. Simply because they don’t try too hard to sound special.

Joe Lean and The Jing Jang Jong

Boom! I’m back in the 80s. The singer’s voice kind of reminds me of Morrissey now and then. He definitely went shopping in his dad’s closet. But it all sounds good and seems to fit (except maybe his tight jeans). Their songs sound nice and fresh. Their set is balanced and there’s enough music to dance to. It definitely made me happy. I’d keep a closer watch on this band.

Broken Records

Did I see this band? My mind lets me down here. Sorry guys next time I will pay more attention.

The Rascals

Three young guys on stage making lots of noise with a truck load of energy. I loved it. It does sound like the Arctic Monkeys with a twist. But it sure sounds like they are developing their own sound. And their set really sounds good and balanced. I definitely loved their slightly raunchy sound that makes it a bit rough around the edges. Hopefully they won’t loose it.

Late of the Pier

These guys certainly have a sound of their own. Lots of electronics and lots of energy. I think they’re trying too hard to be something new and hip. It’s just too much sound. Less is more guys. Music needs to breath now and then. But their songs are all full of crazy sounds, samples and beats. Not my cup of tea.

The Video Nasties

This is around the time Mr. Heineken was getting the best of me. However this band made it hard to be ignored. Lots of energy. Lots of noise. I’m not really into their kind of garage punk trashy music. But I guess their performance was pretty good. If you’re into this you may want to check them out sometime.

Johnny Foreigner

What was wrong here (except too much beer)? This trio was playing a solid show. They put a lot of effort in it and seemed to enjoy themselves a lot as well. Somehow the music didn’t do it for me. I felt like something was missing. Could be me. Could be the beer.

Friendly Fires

I need more cowbell! Fortunately this band uses the cowbell now and then in their songs. They play a mix of punk, funk and dance. Kind of like The Rapture does it. The first time I saw The Rapture perform I was sold and still love ‘em. Friendly Fires didn’t do the same to me. I think it was all a bit less subtle and less original. They did please the crowd though since most people were dancing. So did me and Mr. Heineken.

So what about the next generation of bands? Well I think in the end it was what I expected. Not too many exciting new bands but a new wave of more of the same with maybe some hidden rough gems that need a bit of polishing. All in all the festival is great in my favourite venue. If you don’t want to run between two stages you don’t have to since they conveniently lower a screen to show you what’s playing on the other stage. This way you don’t have to miss a thing. And there’s always Mr. Heineken to hold you company.