With a support act who pulled out at the last minute and a crowd of just 30 people watching, a band could be excused for not putting on the most energetic of shows. Not so the Blood Arm. Introduced by their master of ceremonies as ‘the greatest band in the world’ they did their very best to justify this seemingly outrageous claim over the next hour.
The performance incorporated all the ingredients of a classic rock n’ roll gig: Destruction of the set, a bottle of Jack Daniels being stolen from the bar and passed around mid-song; balconies and barriers being clambered over as frontman Nathaniel Fregoso engaged in a new level audience participation.
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Nathaniel repeatedly left the stage to approach members of the audience and embrace them. On one occasion a guy standing on the front row was accosted and asked his name, to which Nathaniel replied by dedicating the song to him, bringing the microphone stand down to the floor, and executing immaculate vocals a few inches from his face.
The rest of the band, Dyan (keyboard) Zebastian (guitar) and Zach (drums), appeared neither lost nor left out, putting on a superb exhibition of tight musicianship throughout the whole set. “I guess we’ve got used to it” says Zebastien afterwards. “Nathaniel spends more time off the stage than he does on it!” If nothing else, this unpredictability and audacity will make The Blood Arm a hugely successful live band.
All four admit to being huge fans of The Strokes, and whether their influence is conscious or not, the outcome is awesome: Catchy guitar riffs that you cannot help but move to and a limitless supply of energy and spontaneity that is exhilarating, if not exhausting to watch. It isn’t difficult to see why The Blood Arm are Franz Ferdinand’s favourite band.
The Blood Arm played at the Rescue Rooms on 9 May 2005
The Blood Arm Website
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