Jakob, a three piece experimental instrumental band from New Zealand were the first support, and just after touring Europe with Isis, they could not be in any better form. I had already heard heaps of their stuff, some that had been downloaded as their CDs were hard to find in stores, and most of the set I recognised instantly. Unfortunately the crowd was a little thin for them, with only a hundred or so gazing accross the room, but it gradually increased throughout their set. They played a few songs, including Jimmy Hoffa, Oran Mor and Safety In Numbers, three of my favourites. They sounded immaculate, the mix was great and the band were performing in top shape, it sounded just as good, if not better than on record! Such an amazing band to witness.Sadly I was not suprised to hear such comments as "Why aren't they singing?" and "it would sound better if they had singing", but I guess that not everyone can grasp the idea of there being bands that don't require vocals to get a message across, Jakob being one of those bands. Their music is played in such a way that it practically speaks to you, lets your imagination flow.
Jakob played for a good 30 minutes, although it felt like a lot longer. I guess good music does that to you.
Next up was, Kora, a band from Whakatane, New Zealand. Made up of brothers Laughton Kora, Francis Kora, Stuart Kora, Brad Kora and friend Dan McGruer. They class themselves as a Reggae / Dub / Rock band, and I suppose that'd be correct. I wasn't too sure if I liked them first off, but they were very entertaining, and had a great stage presence. Laughton (vocals) had a great voice for the music, and really got into it all. They were a worthy support for Cog, and are an interesting band for anyone who's looking for something different.
Now for the headline, and by this time the place was packed and ready to go. The organisers stupidly divided the small venue into 2 floors using a barrier half was (which is where I was) and during the wait for Cog, there seemed to be a lineup of people ready to jump the barrier when security wasn't looking. Good on them I say, I was quite happy in my spot.
Eventually Cog came out to please all fans old and new, and after the first song, shed light onto the crowd that this was their biggest show yet, which when looking around was not suprising. And it's definitely about time Cog got that kind of recognition. They played a bunch of songs from Sharing Space, and The New Normal. Sadly only one song from the Just Visiting era was played, but at least they played one. Some of the tunes played were What If, Sharing Space, Bird Of Feather, Swamp, The Spine and Moshiach, amongst many others.
They played for a good hour and a half with barely any break between songs. The light show was amazing, they had 8 pylons at the back of the stage, each at a different height with colourful LED looking lights on the front of them, and moving lights on the top. In their final song, How Long, the moving lights made a green laser looking light that 'scanned' the crowd. Very nice touch and a great way to end an already amazing evening.
Cog are one of those bands that delivers live, and really put it all into their show. After seeing them a couple of other times, and meeting them a few times I found out they are really down to earth guys who just want spread their message across and entertain at the same time. Get out an see some Cog soon, you won't be disappointed.
http://www.myspace.com/cogrockmusic
http://www.myspace.com/koraroots
http://www.myspace.com/jakobmusic
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