The Leeds 4-piece’s schtick seems to mark them down as artschool, even if their (crap) name suggests… I dunno, corporate Emo? And onstage, the first impressions might lead to that conclusion too – skinny ties and matching white shirts, front-projected visuals… black armbands?!?!
Yes, iLiKETRAiNS aren’t heading to the indie disco, they’re funeral-bound – though despite burying mankind, there’s praise to be had for what doubles up as a history lessons. Musically the band have, we assume, listened to a bit of epic rock – Jacques Brel, Scott Walker, and even Neil Hannon in the vocals, while there’s hints of the Twilight Sad and Tindersticks in the tunes. But lyrically – as anyone who’s received a copy of their album will tell you – these guys are as much about the lyrics and the stories as they are at making the towering soundscapes that soundtrack the UK Documentary programmes in their heads. “This one’s about failure” announces singer David Martin before launching into ‘Terra Nova’, about Scott’s ill-fated trip to the Antarctic. Met enthusiastically, he describes this response as “a bit worrying”.
Other tunes are on either on human failings or the wider uselessness of mankind – fraudsters John Stonehouse and Donald Crowhurst see their weaknesses set alongside the Salem Witch Trials. Oddly, their earlier material covers chess Master Bobby Fisher and assassinated UK premier Spencer Percival, so the mood is hardly lightened. However, the high point – and that is not the correct term – is ‘We All Fall Down’ about the people of Eyam in Derbyshire, who all died by quarantining their village during the plague and sacrificing themselves to save the north of Britain. With the names of the 260 who died flashing on the screen, it’s a genuinely emotive piece as the stark lighting illuminates the 5 dark souls onstage. If you’re after cliches, here’s one – black is the new white.
More shots from the show at Heidi Kuisma’sFlickr page