By Daniel Tsourekas
It’s quite rare a band make a significant impact in the scene they incorporate themselves in within the span of a year. For Static Dress however, this has come to fruition. Following the release of their debut album, ‘Rouge Carpet Disaster’, the four piece post-hardcore powerhouse have found themselves touring with amazing bands the likes of Sleeping With Sirens and Bring Me The Horizon, visited the ÜS for the first time, and as of most recent, signed to Roadrunner Records releasing a redux of their brilliant LP.
This review follows their most recent ÜK tour, specifically their Manchester date which was held in Rebellion, supported by World of Pleasure, Bodyweb and city locals Mercury.
Straight off the bat, Mercury take to the stage with something to prove, as their 30 minute opening slot sets the mood for the following sets. They most certainly wear their influences on their sleeve, but simultaneously evolve the sound of ’90s grunge complimented by hints of post-hardcore. With only a handful of singles released, it’s not surprising to see the crowd they pull so early on in the evening with their chunky riffs, sludgy breakdowns and catchy melodies. One thing is certain about Mercury, they are definitely a band to keep an eye on in future months.
As the 520 capacity venue slowly starts filling up, they’re greeted with breakbeats and dark and dingy lighting. There’s no better way to describe Bodyweb other than twisted, and that’s exactly what they aimed to achieve with their train_wreck_simulation project. This translates perfectly on stage, as the dark energy projected onto the crowd subsequently leads to brutal moshpits and the kind of aggressiveness that fills the room with the adrenaline rush you’d expect from a hardcore, no barrier show.
With the first two acts being exceptionally entertaining throughout their allocated time slots, it’s time for the main support. World Of Pleasure have been making waves in the hardcore scene as of recent. Whether it be their collaboration EP with Weapon X, or their self-titled EPs, each track could easily start a chaotic night at any event. This comes as no surprise however, considering the lead members current work in Mortality Rate and Serration. Everything following World Of Pleasure’s arrival is pure chaos and as cliché as it sounds, hardcore (to give an idea of how down to earth and encompassing of the DIY ideology they are, it was exhilarating seeing people that I moshed, interacted and laughed with suddenly up on stage performing one of the hardest sets I’ve seen all year).
There isn’t a second in the whole set in which the crowd aren’t two-stepping, swinging, crowdsurfing, grabbing the mic from Jess to scream the lyrics in every song performed. If this doesn’t incorporate the full spirit of the hardcore scene right now, nothing does. The riffs are brutal, the bass is punchy, the crowd’s movements mirror the drums. Everything is clockwork as Jess provides easily one of the best vocal performances I’ve seen in a while. Alongside a surprise visit and performance from Frazer Cassling, lead vocalist for Cauldron to close things out, World of Pleasure prove tenfold that they’re not only next up, they’re now.
Static Dress have always put effort into their world building and atmosphere on stage. The lighting is precise, the intervals follow the story they have created, the old school televisions project the songs lyrics throughout the entire performance. They have perfected their craft in terms of presentation, and this time has been no exception.
Starting the night off with ‘fleahouse’, it’s genuinely amazing seeing how much they have evolved since their last headline appearance in Manchester for their ‘I Hope You Hate This’ tour at the Deaf Institute. This is double the capacity, yet they have every single person screaming every lyric word for word. In just over a year they have achieved so many things, and this is fully justified with the next track performed. ‘Push Rope’ has always been a fan favourite since the band started performing it. It’s safe to say however that Rebellion has probably never seen so many people jumping and moving following the opening riff. In all honesty, in those three brief minutes the venue felt like an arena, and that can stand as a testament to the level of importance this band has in the scene right now.
The rest of the night continues in similar fashion. Jess also makes another appearance for the ‘Courtney, Just Relax’ redux breakdown, which is everything one could have hoped for live. Olli suddenly requests assistance for the next song, as he sings the first lyrics of ‘vague’, which sends the crowd into a confused frenzy. It’s quite a comical moment seeing long term listeners and fans slowly descend into madness due to this unexpected and rare prologue addition to the setlist.
‘vague’s addition however isn’t the biggest surprise of the night. Two key moments can be characterized as the most memorable of the night, and both of those moments share the aspect of a surprise feature on stage. The first moment has more of a heartwarming nature, as former bassist Connor Reilly takes to the stage to provide vocals during the bridge of ‘Di-sinTer’, just over a year after his last shows with the band. It shows the level of respect and friendship they still share, and the amount of love the fans still have for him. Shortly following this however, the second surprise feature is of a more chaotic nature, as LOATHE’s frontman Kadeem France joins Static Dress on stage for yet another throwback fan favourite, ‘safeword’.
Closing the phenomenal performance with ‘sweet.’, ‘clean.’, ‘marisol’ and ‘Welcome In’, one can see how in sync the band have been the entire night with not only each other, but their audience. The appreciation and love shown on their part confirms that they have built a community that care, and interact with them. Olli exclaims a heartfelt speech which summarized explains exactly that.
It is reassuring to see that Static Dress have remained a band by the people for the people despite their recent growth and success, and sooner rather than later they will become not only a staple in the scene, but the representatives of it.
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