I am a massive Star Wars fan. I love everything about the original trilogy. I had various Star Wars themed tables at my wedding. I actually persuaded my wife to be, to walk back up the aisle to the Cantina theme after we tied the knot. So, eager as I was to spend the night playing newly released Star Wars Battlefront Beta extravaganza on Xbox, I decided to forsake the frozen plains of Hoth for the audio wasteland presented by 3 Teeth. Holy shit, am I glad I did.
Audio’s not a massive venue and the 40 or so bodies there didn’t come close to filing it when I showed up. First support act Seraph Sin were plagued by technical difficulties from a faulty laptop, resulting in many apologies and a shortened set. More rivethead regulars appeared to see Glasgow stalwarts Je$us Loves Amerika and despite being down a guitarist the guys showed us what they were made of with their surprisingly broad electro-industrial set. An enjoyable cover of NWA’s “Fuck tha Police” didn’t quite carry the anger of the original.
The venue swelled again as 3 Teeth took to the stage with a confident swagger and swiftly justified it with the intense “Nihil”. Machine rhythm drums, synths and crushing guitars make an excellent platform for the distorted vocal chant “Bound by flesh …. Freed by blood”. Taking influence from guitar heavy industrial acts like Ministry and Skinny Puppy, 3Teeth sound every bit as great as these bands in their prime. It’s not all 90’s nostalgia inspired by the new Mad Max reboot though; 3Teeth have updated traditional industrial sounds and themes for a socially networked globalised future.
Visuals play an important part of the act, with singer Alexis Mincolla supremely aware of his role both as a symbol of the band and a great vocalist. The moustachioed wasteland warrior certainly cuts an imposing silhouette against the projected USA war footage on “Pearls 2 Swine”. His menacing figure can’t hide the sheer energy and enthusiasm of fellow musicians Andrew Means, Chase Brawner and Xavier Swafford. 3Teeth are as accomplished with their multi-media visuals as they are with their instruments; a stream of clips were projected, tailored to each song on the set. Couple this with masses of smoke and constant flashing strobe lights raised the intensity of the whole experience to seizure-inducing heights.
3Teeth tear through a set comprising of beat-driven, guitar heavy, headbanging tracks like the above mentioned “Nihil” and “Consent”, more electronic experiments such as “Master of Decay” and dancier numbers reminiscent of Ministry’s “Land of Rape and Honey”. It’s an impressive mix that gets the crowd going from the start and never lets up.
With themes such as invasion of privacy, corporate greed, state sponsored terrorism and man’s inherent drive to be a weapons grade cunt to his fellow man, 3Teeth have plenty of real world material to support the vehement bile in their music. The only real downside was the length of their set. At just over an hour I was left insatiably hungry for more. Still, this was 3Teeth touring their first album and it was an incredibly impressive show. If you’re an industrial fan with 3Teeth playing anywhere near you, even Star Wars is no excuse to miss it.
(Stuart McAndrew)
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