Sgt Wolfbanger
Don’t you just hate it when you look forward to something so much yet you end up getting disappointed when the dream becomes a reality? Well that happened to me last night I’m afraid…
I drove to Manchester Academy with butterflies in my tummy ready to see a band I had been waiting years, to see, and even better, I was interviewing the little metal gods… yet unfortunately for me and my little heart, Staind were possibly one of the most unfriendly bands I’d ever interviewed… thus one of the worst live bands I’d seen.
So why may you ask, am I talking about Staind when this review is about those five pretty boys in Sgt Wolfbanger? Well, if it wasn’t for Aaron Lewis and his anti-journalist attitude I might not have wandered off around Manchester to see what other tasty little morsels of music were shaking their thing on a cold January evening… and a tasty bunch I didn’t half find!
Sgt Wolfbanger were rocking out in the tiny Academy 3 at their Unsigned night, and from the second I walked in (mid-way through their set) I knew that these guys could give me hours more pleasure than Staind… oh, and they sounded pretty good too.
If you haven’t heard of them yet, you’re missing a trick, they might be young, but they sure know how to whip a audience full of school-kids into a right old frenzy, so much so that I felt like a grandma as I cradled my pint, feet firmly rooted to the ground as all manner of shapes were thrown around me.
Showing they aren’t afraid of a mid-set wardrobe change (watch out Girls Aloud!) they transformed into neon smurfs as they donned t-shirts drenched in UV paint for their aptly named song Paint which went down well with the kids who had clearly down a litre of White Lightening before coming down. Mint!
I know it take a lot to capture my critical eye,; and being a fan of more heavier music, I was quite surprised to find myself enjoying their set, and as it culminated with the song Take Me Away I could really see the potential with these five lads from Crewe.
Take Me Away has all the right ingredients to be their very first hit single; the slow start, the bass-led final breakdown and the vocals which sound worryingly like Staind’s Arron Lewis just joined the band - maybe his voice was still just ringing in my ears - really took my breath away.
Watch out cheesy boy bands; there are five new kids on the block.
FemaleFirst - Ruth Harrison
Photos By Andy Squire