27/4/2006 JOANovARC & Eyelash in Hertford

Subject	JOANovARC & Eyelash in Hertford
PostedDate	4/27/2006 11:31:00 AM
	Another visit to one of my favourite venues - one that puts many well known places in Camden and the West End to shame! I arrived at the Hertford Marquee too late to see Red Star Rebels, but no doubt I'll be seeing them again in some Camden toilet before too long... Eyelash took to the stage soon after my arrival. I knew their name, but had somehow managed to miss them in the past even though I had attended at least one show where they were on the same bill as JOANovARC. However, the girls from JoA had spoken highly of Eyelash so I guessed they would be worth checking out - and they certainly were! Fronted by a black haired girl singer who sounded as good as she looked (which was pretty good) and wasn't lacking in stage presence either, this band certainly grab your attention. The blonde girl on bass and the emo looking guy on guitar also contribute backing vocals, and does the drummer occasionally. The bass player seemed pretty good and rocked out harder than a lot of guy bassists do. The 'emo' looking guitarist rocked too, and had a harder sound than his appearance suggested - throwing in some impressive widdley bits too. The headphone wearing drummer (Finnish I think) sounded powerful, and the band seemed to have good songs as well. Not too sure about the name, but certainly a band to watch out for. JOANovARC were excellent as usual - I'm running out of things to say about them now. A couple of new songs were aired, including a surprising blues style workout. This isn't a band who play virtually the same set at every gig for a year or two - new songs are often added. Even songs that I've seen them play many times over the last year or so still seem fresh due to the sheer passion for playing live that these girls inject into every show. Their songwriting and talent as musicians make sure I never get tired of seeing them play, and they just don't seem to ever play bad shows - even suffering from flu or in sauna like conditions like that amazing show upstairs at the Garage. They are even less likely to play a bad show in this venue with it's superb PA & monitors - plus a guy on the desk who really knows what he's doing. Only 4 for four bands - you can't go wrong really.