Reviews

Thu 31 May 2012

Kitten Surprise, For the Quail and The Fu King, Refuel, 23/05/12

‘Kitten Surprise’ opened the show and left the crowd desperate for a second hit, myself included. If you haven’t seen them yet, make sure you keep an eye out because they are truly unmissable. ‘Kitten Surprise’ are an energetic three-piece offering up a quirky and unpredictable mix of funk rock originals. Their set is always guaranteed to get you laughing as they incorporate a very natural comedy into their performance. Alongside being very talented musos (although they won’t admit it), their lyrics are hilarious and the onstage antics are unrivalled, even in the weirdest of places. The pure fun they produce is so contagious it leaves you quite gutted when it’s all over; probably why I would have to dub them THE most entertaining act I have seen in Dunedin thus far.

The second band was ‘For The Quail’ and I enjoyed them very much indeed. I was reminded of Jeff Buckley from time to time, although there was not so much “brood” to it. Quail have written some really uplifting material and were a pleasure to listen to. The show sounded great and the lads appeared just as professional as a band of their caliber should – impressed.

Headlining the night was ‘The Fu King’ who I had seen once last year. Since October 2011 this band have noticeably stepped up. When I first experienced them they had only just formed, regardless; I was still quite mesmerized by their performance. They have since taken what they began with and nurtured it into a very slick, polished and original take on heavy music. The chemistry between all four members is organic and the sound is fresh. I really look forward to watching this band grow further in the future.

Well done to the crowd for being so open minded, twas indeed a broad range of musical terrain covered but everybody stuck through and saw the night out dancing. All in all, fantastic show!

Written by Michael Morris

Related artists: For The Quail , Kitten Surprise