First published by Moonshine Magazine www.www.mickmoonshine.co.uk April 2011
Photographs reproduced by kind permission of Sue Paterson Photography www.suepaterson.co.uk
Maybe it was a curious example of fortuitous planetary alignment. Or, perhaps, God is a rocker and decided to give Ilkeston’s finest a break. Given that the Devil is said to have all the best tunes, though, and the band in question was Isolysis, the more likely explanation was that Old Nic decided to intervene and look after his own. Or, for the agnostics among you, how about tonight simply being a case of a truly special band taking another giant stride towards greatness? Whatever the case, the fact remains that tonight was, even by their singularly high standards, a superb performance and one that, in their own words, was one of the best shows they’ve ever played.
There was certainly magic in the air and the venue had about it a tangible air of anticipation. In footballing terms, MFN is very much a home game for Isolysis and the faithful did not disappoint, packing the venue to a degree virtually unheard of for an unsigned act.
There were several immediately apparent improvements; the first being the band’s entrance. Too often the foursome merely amble on stage and plug in, while front man, Bane, goes into his cheeky chappy shtick. Modesty and self-deprecation are all very well but one is often left wondering: is Bane a talented singer fronting one of the UK’s best unsigned acts or is he a pub comedian who does a bit of singing on the side?
Ascending the stage in total darkness, as the ominous intro music (from Terminator 2) played out, the first the crowd knew of the band’s arrival was when guitarist, Danny Beardsley, peeled off a couple of licks, playing along to the theme music. Cue: instant roars and an electrifying start as the band kicked straight into Volatile. A grinning Bane urged the audience to “make some fucking noise!” and the response was instantaneous. A superb opening gambit and one much more worthy of the band.
The pacing of the set was first class and not for a moment did the energy levels drop and with all four musicians on superlative form, clearly relishing the support from the audience and feeding from it, this was gig of the year so far.
The new material displayed a far greater song writing sophistication and maturity and songs like Alive and the moving intensity of Reflections were nothing short of outstanding.
Impressive, too, was Beardsley’s peerless fret board acrobatics. Most of the young man’s solos started with note-for-note renditions of their recorded counterparts only to spin off into delightfully unexpected directions as he improvised with a skill, feel and virtuosity that was an absolute pleasure to behold.
Quantum improvements, as well, from front man Bane. The chat was kept to a minimum as he let the music do the talking, making his sparing comic interventions all the funnier when they occurred. Chief among them being his hilarious intro patter to Vampurity, with all the minors ordered to sing the notorious opening line “…and never mind what your Mum and Dad say!”
It would be foolish to pretend that a certain frisson isn’t present when Bane is on stage. One never knows just how far he’ll go but when he walks the line, as his did tonight, without actually crossing it, then there isn’t a front man around who can match him for pure entertainment. While the man’s undoubted talents as a vocalist have never been in doubt, tonight saw his presentation and stage craft take on a newer and welcome professionalism. A deeply impressive performance, both vocally and theatrically.
And yet, incredibly, even Bane and Beardsley had to take second place as drummer, Wright, gave the audience a master class in the science of percussion. Tight as the skin on his snare and absolutely flawless from beginning to end, he breathed new life into the older material while the new songs showed how just much he contributes to his new band.
It was obvious how comfortable and relaxed bassist Hayes is with his new partner as he, too, barely put a front wrong all night and the delighted grins flashing between all four of the band made it clear they were having the time of their lives.
There were the usual grumbles from some, regarding the sound, always an issue at MFN, and the band, of course, have their detractors but the inescapable truth is this; Isolysis ripped the roof from the venue, set it on fire and then hurled it into the stratosphere.
This was rock ‘n’ roll at its finest and if this act is not signed by the end of the year there ought to be a crash on the stock market and riots in the streets.