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Protein
A Concert Review |
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How's this for being in a tough spot. You're a band.
Tough enough. In the case of this night you're a band called
Protein. Fine. How's about you're a band that is opening for the
opening band of the band coming before the headliner. Yep, four
bands and you're the first on the bill. That's pretty tough too.
Well, add this to the fact that in every notice around town they
only list three bands and say the show starts at 7 PM. Problem is
you're the fourth band and the show actually starts at 6:30.
Alright, do you have all of that? What happens in this case? Well,
in the case of Protein this night, you play like the place is
packed, even though there's only about 40 some odd people listening
to you (including the venue staff).
Protein is a trio from the San Francisco area that tells people
their many influences are Pantera, Hank Williams, 80's metal bands,
and "Star Wars." This night in Chicago they had thirty
minutes to cram in as much music from their current CD, "Ever
Since I Was a Kid," and during those minutes nearly all of
those influences came through. And one more thing came through, you
can write lyrics to just about anything.
Yep, I'm standing there listening to songs like
"Refrigerator" and "Over My Head" and wondering
what really causes someone to write a song like these. But I'm also
thinking the music is as much about those varying influences, maybe
more so, than the lyrics. I didn't notice those influences listening
to the CD, but watching Protein this night they threw in some decent
guitar jams, especially during "In Half," that reminded me
of the big-haired metal bands of yesterday, and they tossed in this
great instrumental that showed country did indeed play a part in
their development.
Protein puts on a decent show, considering everything they had
going against them, and the crowd was polite, seemed to like the
band, but just had no clue where they came from. More than some
"three chord" bands of today, Protein helped to show that
guitar-driven bands can actually have some talent. They aren't going
to win any awards for their vocal abilities (no Pavarotti here), and
really don't seem to have that "hook" song yet to launch
them into mainstream radio, but in time they have the potential to
move up to the top of the marquee. My overall opinion though, is the
band needs to get out of the "quirky" mode their CD shows
("I've got a refrigerator, heavy as can be") and use those
past influences, and their already evident musical talent, to
develop songs to stand the test of time. Well, it's a weak thumb up
for Protein. They held their own during their thirty minutes, the
crowd didn't throw shit at them and no one yelled "You
suck." They didn't suck, they just need some work.
That's it for this one, I'm The Dude on the Right! L8R!! |
