It's past Midnight and I'm waiting for the Dragons to come on stage. There have been some excellent bands on tonight who have stopped me nodding off after a ten hour working day. But I was impatient for the Dragons to come on so I can go home and get some much needed kip. I want to see something special after all this waiting - I wasn't disappointed! Bristolians Anthony Tombling Jr on lead vocals and David Francolini on drums are an electronic rock/Indie duo whose new album "Here Are The Roses" came out just a few days ago. They have some great musicians with them for their tour to promote the album - Gavin Brockis on synths, Calvin Talbot and Will Crewdson on guitars and Jim Fage on bass. Tombling Jr looks like Depeche Mode's Dave Gahan when he first appears wearing a suit and dark glasses.
He is an enigmatic frontman with a distinctive voice. The track "Condition", the first single from the album, sounds like Joy Division but the other tracks showcased tonight highlight that Dragons have a distinct sound to call their own and are certainly unconnected from any of their contemporary peers. Their melodies are mostly upbeat with great guitar riffs with a dark lyrical underbelly. Their lyrics are intelligent, dark and deep. Many are odes to lost love such as "Where Is The Love" and "Failure". "The Memories" is a song about loss. Here is a band unafraid of examining the bleaker aspects of life. However, there is something I need to vent my spleen about - venue owners take note! Putting the main band on at past midnight does not work! By that time, most of the audience were tired, drunk or both. One bloke in particular, clearly sloshed, was spoiling the event for other people by going round making a nuisance of himself which resulted in a number of people leaving early. Dragons didn't deserve that. They were the main act of the evening and had the lowest audience number. But I get a feeling they'll be playing to bigger audiences in the near future. I hope to see them again soon - but at a different venue!
Jackie Hitchen saw Dragons @ Rio's Leeds on Friday 8 June 2007
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