Sonic terrorism is probably the best way to describe what Opaque do tonight, as four sinisterly masked men, dressed all in black, stand motionless in front of us, their guitars screaming beautiful symphonies of feedback and aural desctruction in the darkness, building to staggering crescendos of white noise.
Though without quite the darkness and violence of Opaque, Alex Neilson and Richard Youngs give just as ferocious an assualt on rock's confines. Jandek's original rhythm section perform tonight as a free-rock drums and guitar duo, Neilson's driving percussion melding perfectly with Youngs' e-bowed and distorted guitar work, the highlight coming when they are joined by Birchville Cat Motel's Campbell Kneale on additional guitar.
With a table full of equipment and tangled nests of wires it's perhaps not surprising that there are technical complications before New Zealand's Birchville Cat Motel can start weaving his powerful layers of drone. Soon overcome, he masterfully balances beauty and violence, shreaking almost unheard through distortion over his loops and electronics, and the only thing that's missing tonight is the truly transcendental volume of 2005's Instal performance.
Photos of this gig available here.
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