DOOM! Magazine

Posted by Libbi Rich on Tuesday, September 14th, 2010

!!! - Harlows September 14, 2010 ©2010 Matt Walton CC BY-NC 2.0

!!! at The Clubhouse, Tempe, AZ   August 5, 2010
w/DJ Sean Watson and Light Asylum

The scene:  a dreary strip mall in Tempe, Arizona.  The only sign of life, a bright sign reading “The Clubhouse.”  Who would guess that this would be the setting for the best, sweatiest, dancingest show that’s hit the Phoenix metro club scene in years?  But that is exactly what !!! (chk chk chk) delivered on Sunday, August 5th.

The crowd was appropriately warmed up by local favorite,  DJ Sean Watson, a chubby, bearded mix master, spinning high energy house, accompanied by a psychedelic screen show directed by his MacBook wielding sidekick. Then the scene got really interesting as Light Asylum, the power dance duo from Brooklyn, NY, led by !!!’s Shannon Funchess took the stage.  Funchess had the packed house mesmorized and dancing like puppets on a string to her eclectic percussion beats and dynamic vocals, with Bruno Coviello on synth and drum machine bringing the heat and a bright, rapidly cycling screen show bringing the light.

The room’s energy rose palpably as the headliners hit the stage in full force. !!! brought their full touring complement to the 600 capacity room.  Eight members filled the small stage comfortably, working like a well-oiled machine to whip the crowd into a psychedelic dance punk frenzy.  Vocalist Nic Offer, in trademark short shorts, but with his curls shorn short, danced and sang like a new millennium Lady Miss Kier on steroids, working through most of the band’s new album, “Strange Weather, Isn’t It?” along with several of the band’s fan faves from the past.

Offer seemed to really groove on the close up and personal feel of the small club, coming to the edge of the stage to shake drops of sweat onto the adoring stage-huggers like a benediction, and dancing into the crowd like a lord partying with his minions, all the while belting out high octane vocals, grinning, grimacing, and gyrating.

Missing was former singer/drummer, John Pugh, who departed the ensemble in 2007.  But rather than feeling the absence, the audience seemed thrilled with vocalist Funchess’ interpretation of !!! mainstay, “Yadnus.”  Funchess’ really showed her prowess best, though, with the new song, “Wannagain Wannagain.”

Guitarist Mario Andreoni kept pace with Offer through the entire show, ripping through his riffs effortlessly, and seeming to enjoy Offer’s antics just as much as the fans.  The rhythm section, featuring drummer Paul Quattrone and bass man/e-sounds wiz Tyler Pope, kept everyone moving to the pounding, pulsing beat.  Dan Gorman’s horn brought a brightness to the mix that enlivened the sound beyond basic dance punk and into a whole new realm that belongs solely to the amazing group of performers who rightly deserve three exclamation points as their title.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 14th, 2010 at 11:58 AM. It is filed under Libbi Rich, Live Music and tagged with !!!, chk chk chk. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.