The Carling Weekend 2006: Lock Up Stage

United Kingdom | by Ross Baker | 27 August 2006

Leeds: Saturday, 26 August

King Blues' ukulele driven ska folk is an easy way to settle into the day as soreheads from Friday are eased by their mellow vibes. However, their sublime reggae soft-rock would be more suited to a chill out area rather than the Lock Up Stage and it’s clear we are hungry for something more substantial.

Send More Paramedics' zombie core racket is a fantastic homage to The Misfits and Slayer, which hits the stage like an atom bomb, kicking off the first mosh pits of the day and engaging a party atmosphere that could wake the [walking] dead.

Municipal Waste carry the momentum further with their furious 80s thrash metal racket. 'Unleash The Bastards' and 'Toxic Revolution' send the pit wild like a shoal of bloodthirsty piranhas scuffling for the last piece of a dead corpse that has been heaved into the water.  It’s like the 90s never happened.

Lightyear are much closer to the original Ska blueprint than their American contemporaries and righteously show us how it’s done. Like a group of football hooligans let loose in a brewery, they deliver a cracking balls out performance. Songs about Michael J. Fox and two singers prowling the stage naked are enough to send even the most casual observer into hysterics.  If this is their last ever gig, as they claim, then they certainly go out with a bang. Pulling out all the stops with copious Alan Partridge quotes and a pantomime horse they are real delight.

Another band doing their farewell shows, Boy Sets Fire’s powerful emotional hardcore is delivered with purpose but severely hampered by a god awful sound mix and a lack of audience participation.
Tracks like 'Release The Dogs' are well received but this is more like Boy Goes to Bed with a Hot Water Bottle as their subtle melodies get lost in the mix.

Rise Against’s melodic hardcore is vigorous after struggling to get going. At times they are uplifting and impassioned but their workmanlike approach makes them feel like they are more of a filler act.

The Bouncing Souls' Clash type call and response punk rock gets the day back on track.
Tracks like 'The Gold Song' get the crowd behaving like space hoppers and revives the party atmosphere.

Hundred Reasons are a white knuckle ride of melodic hard rock that drags you along for the ride. You can’t help but sing along to infectious melodies of tracks like the bombastic 'If I Could' and the soulful 'Falter'. It’s a shame that it’s guitarist Paul Townsend’s last show as he contributes greatly to HR’s triple threat vocal attack. But new album 'Kill Your Own' should propel them back to the top of the British rock scene if there is any justice.

Body Count may be Ice T’s vanity project that takes its cues straight from the books of Sabbath and Led Zep, but live they are a riot. Entering in a Michael Myers mask, Ice T is a grand master of ceremonies and the band’s raw ghetto rhythms and sledge hammer guitars make for a fantastic dance party that threatens to tear the stage in two. Tracks like 'KKK Bitch' see Ice spitting out homicidal rhymes while guitarist Ernie C bashes his instrument, although their version of 'Hey Joe' is a bit like watching a pub tribute band.

New Jersey natives Thursday produce an energetic performance with vocalist Geoff Rickley doing his best impression of the energiser bunny flailing around the stage like his life depends on it.
'Understanding A Car Crash' and the vital 'Jet Black New Year' are highlights of a set brimming with emotion and sentiment.

Headliners Sick Of It All are a juggernaut of Hardcore, the true daddies. Celebrating their twentieth anniversary in savage incendiary fashion, all tough guy bluster and gruff lung ripping, their brutal melodies are a heart-warming experience that everyone from 13 to 30 can appreciate.
Statements of intent don’t come much bigger than numbers like the thumping 'Disco Sucks Fuck Everything' and the brutal 'Uprising Nation', which turn the moshpit into a war zone windmilling and spin kicking like Jet Li in a room full of Ninjas! Sweat and excitement fills the air and the Koller brothers show no sign of slowing down or mellowing out. Gang chanting choruses and beat downs rock the tent like earthquakes, a true call to arms and revolution. SOIA have the total attention of everyone from start to finish, not leaving a dry shirt in the pit. Getting the hell beaten out of you never felt so good.