Troutpartout 15th Party – Scala, London 26/11/09

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For shame, people of London! Despite a diverse and appealing line-up (including a certain Israeli garage rock band famed for putting on the best live shows this side of Tel Aviv), this celebration of Belgian promoter Toutpartout’s 15th anniversary attracted a disappointingly desultory crowd, who in the event missed out on a very entertaining evening of music and mild bodily harm.

The night didn’t initially bode well, with disappointing performances from TODD, a punishingly cacophonous but otherwise generic noise band and Githead, a Wire side-project which exchanged that other band’s innovation for unengaging shoegazey indie-rock. But minimalist multi-instrumentalist Martin Dosh (most notable for his collaborations with Andrew Bird) impressed with his intricate laid-back loops, and then of course, there was the mighty Monotonix.

Less a band than chaos personified; a whirlwind of insanity that leaves devastation and liberated beer in its wake, the cult three piece have to be seen to be believed. The music is a secondary, nay, tertiary concern- it’s pretty basic but effective stuff, ultimately utterly overshadowed by the performance that encompasses it- and man, what a performance it is! It’s not even apparent the show’s even started before drummer Haggai Fershtman’s being dragged around the venue on his back by singer/crazyman Ami Shalev, who takes the opportunity to nick a few beers from unwitting audience members to drench his bandmate with. This all happens before a single note‘s been played, and it’s mild stuff compared to what‘s to come- Shalev vaults round the venue, picks random people up and using them to attack Fershtman, plays football with a giant plastic bin, regularly moons the audience and clambers up every available surface with wild-eyed glee. At one point he steals a hat from an audience member who then engages in a dance-off to get it back- the headwear at one point is stuffed into the front of Shalev’s sweat-drenched shorts; his opponent shows his contempt by rubbing the crotch-christened cap on his own face.

Fershtman and guitarist Yonotan Gat are no shrinking violets either- their kit migrates round the venue almost as swiftly as Shalev, and the former is astonishingly unfazeable in the fact of all the random assaults his associates inflict on him, but there’s no denying who the star of the show is. Highlight of the night was when Shalev got audience members (including this reviewer) to hold him and a drum kit aloft in the air whilst he soloed in a particularly energetic manner- even though I nearly broke my finger in the process, it was without a doubt one of the most memorable gig moments of the year.

After that cavalcade of insanity, the gentle folk stylings of Phosphorescent came across as a (very gentle) shock to the system. His voice may not be classically strong, but it’s got character, and his inventive use of loop pedals elevates him way above his peers. Whilst I unfortunately had to miss Scout Niblett due to the tribulations of London public transport, Black Heart Procession deserve a mention for their use of musical saw, always a welcome addition to any musical endeavour. Their gothic balladry may have failed to truly grab my attention, but at the very least they fitted the commendable eclecticism at the heart of this event- a birthday party Toutpartout should be proud of.

Photos by Anika Motterhsaw