Wellington's Music Box

Elston Gun – “a flaming cougar jumping off an exploding oil rig!”

Do a Google image search for Cougar and these are some of the results.

This:

or this:

or THIS:

OOOPS!

Well, the cougars I’m talking about will jump at you as well, roaring wild!

But instead of  sharp claws they are wielding guitars, drumsticks and vocals.

Saturday night these cougars were officially presenting their new single, ‘Chaperone’.

The crowd had been thoroughly revved up by The Pyramid Scheme and The Slur Tones, and now the boys ripped into them with their first new song  ‘Fives’. The show had a good mix of old songs from the White Noise EP and the upcoming album; well spaced to introduce slower paced songs while maintaining their commitment to full-on dance/ headbanging fun. Even though some of the hardcore fans struggled a bit with the more sedate starts of songs, like ‘Don’t Panic, the majority of the crowd had a rocking great time dancing away.

Unfortunately there was a bit of guitar and vox feedback during some of the songs, but that didn’t dampen the guys’ commitment or the crowds’ appreciation.

The bands’ newest member, Thomas Darlow – guitar and vox- proved himself to be quite an addition: his vocals adding an interesting contrast point to Seamus’ vocals. In ‘Hang me out to dry’, for example, a cover of the Cold War Kids classic Tom and Seamus complemented each other perfectly and added another layer to the song.

What absolutely amazed me: to watch them ALL get into the music, the atmosphere and  then in between watch Dan, the bass man, introducing the songs and maintaining audience contact: cool as a cucumber, with a sense humour that some TV presenters should get a slice of!

All in all, another great night as far as I was concerned, as the Slur Tones and The Pyramid Scheme had delivered excellent sets too.

Only two things left to say: when’s the next gig dudes, and when is the album coming??!!

Now, while viewing this clip I’d like you to bear in mind a couple of things:
First, this is the first time I’ve used the audio recorded from the PA into my audio program. The sound is very clinical, and everything is there, every little cough, loose connection, etc. I think I prefer a “warmer” sound and will have to experiment with mixing ambient sound with it.

Second, this is the first gig with the new line-up for the guys, and they are presenting new material.

All might not be perfect all the time, but just go with the flow and enjoy the moment.

And here is  ‘Hang Me Out To Dry’

And here’s the rest of them. ENJOY! I certainly enjoyed the raw energy and full-on performance by these guys!

‘Fives’

‘She Knows’

‘Look At You Now’

‘Black Russian’

‘Don’t Panic’