After surviving for nearly twenty years on the sparse musical heritage
provided by Ace of Base and the odd death metal outfit (well, since the demise of
Abba at any rate), Sweden has, remarkably, produced a sudden wealth of talent. The doors
were opened, mid-90s, by The Cardigans, and now we have the masterful
cartoon-punk of The Hives, epic rock with The Soundtrack of Our Lives and
acoustic delight of The Kings of Convenience. And tonight's gig showcases an
addition to the exponentially rising roster of good Swedish bands.
The (International) Noise Conspiracy (T(I)NC) are a band on the up. They've
supported all the right people - The Hives, At The Drive In and most
recently The White Stripes on their recent US tour (there's even talk of
Jack White being in tonight's audience) and it looks like their time is now.
Of the bands mentioned above, T(I)NC draws most parallels with The
Hives, if only because both play hi-energy garage punk and wear a band
uniform. Tonight the band don punky looking sleeveless black printed
T-shirts with the obligatory brushed-forward, dyed-black hair. Unlike The
Hives, the Conspiracy don't just wear uniform as sartorial gimmickry - it's
also an expression of political solidarity.
Yep, the band have a political message and it's pretty much in tune with
the recent May Day demonstrations - capitalism is bad, smash the system, etc.
etc. Singer Dennis Lyxzen earnestly talks about "what happened in
Gothenburg" between songs, which have
titles like Capitalism Stole My Virginity, Up for Sale and Smash It Up. "The
problem with the French election is not that Le Pen got 18% of the vote," Lyxzen
declares mid-set, "but that he got one single vote". Although this generates
huge cheers from the audience, the reason they're here, I suspect, is not to
ponder the shortcomings of an apathetic democracy, but to Rock Out.
They're given every opportunity to of course, with fiercely anthemic
choruses and crunching guitar riffs on the stand-out tracks The Reproduction
of Death and Up For Sale. All five band members have quite clearly mastered
their punk rock posturing: Dennis's Iggy Pop-styled microphone swinging
compliments the enigmatic presence of keyboard player Sara, and even the
bassist and drummer demand more attention than most rhythm sections: at one
point drummer Ludwig elevates himself into a Christ-like pose on his drum
stool.
If you can stomach the anti-capitalist diatribe and the last At the
Drive-In album didn't give you a headache, then T(I)NC could be the band for
you. But if, like me, you prefer a peppering of irony served up with your
garage punk, you're better off sticking with The Hives.
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