I was banging on about crap bands and that there is no sense of urgency or bubbling under scene/band ready to explode. There well may be one in Northern Ireland that are part classic, part contemporary roar and a bit all right! The Answer (www.theanswer.ie) are a true light in this dark ages of music and especially in the rock and metal genre. Just deadly dull and boring bands seem to have inherited the landscape of both these musical niches. The solution seems so obvious; The Answer from Belfast. I had been tipped about a year ago about a new rock act that was very different and making a bunch of noise in the UK and Japan. Gave their myspace several listenings and was slightly impressed; a Free, Black Crowes, Zep, Back Street Crawler (Paul Kossoff...how obscure is that) type of thing happening here but with some nice modern flow and some shit hot guitar playing. So with much anticipation, we headed to see The Answer open for AC/DC this past winter at the local arena. They had 30 to 35 minutes I believe and a fairly uninterested crowd to deal with. No biggie; they band came out and introduced themselves and proceeded to kill the next 35 minutes. Like most acts who are very new and relatively unknown to the audience they are playing for, they had little room and a small amount of equipment. Looked a bit overwhelmed, but when you closed your eyes, it seemed like they could be the headliner. Great sound, solid songs, a nice swagger (not arrogance), spot on playing and a vocal from Cormac that can be ranked right up there with the best of the rockers. He is a screamer, a real good one and a powerful one. He is definitely in the style of Plant, Paul Rodgers, Steve Marriott and Chris Robinson. I think they did the whole "Never To Late" ep which was out here in the states at the time; great video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CYsxWGSugIg). Having more than held their own in this tough environment of indifference and weed smoke. I was very much looking forward to seeing them in a more cosy atmosphere!
That night finally came the other night at a small club in Chicago on Saturday August 15th . This was on a day off on the second leg of the US AC/DC tour. I would think opening for a huge international metal act such as AC/DC can cut both positively and negatively. You only get 30 to 40 minutes each night and half the crowd is not there yet or out in the hall drinking. On the other hand, you get to rock at least 10,000 people a night or try to at least. I guess it is a lot of indifference with a small percentage of new converts each night! I know several converts from the two AC/Dc shows here. I have to say that these guys played a solid, no bullsh*t set at their headline gig here August 15th. They played for well over an hour to a crowd of 200+; not too shabby for their first time thru on their own. New, full length cd is out here in the states and is every bit as good as the ep. "Everyday Demons" has many high spots and very few low points. Check out the video for the new single "On And On" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYHbGEZjBk8),
this song is a great one that stays with you as it has some flow and a killer bite. The whole set was hot, steamy and rockin'. They know how to run a set and they know how to cater to and push their audience. No cliches and no filler; just the way I love it!! For a great idea of them live, check out this clip from the David Letterman show (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5aT6iuYaNtg&feature=related). I should have a short interview with the lads soon in the blog, so stay tuned for some answers from THE ANSWER....HA!
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