Written By Wolves
3rd November 2017
The Kings Arms, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review and Photography by Mark Derricutt.
I make no pretence that I’m more of a metalhead than a rocker, but there’s one thing I also make no pretence over – a long-standing love affair with melody and good hooks over brutal beats any day, and that’s something Written By Wolves brings to the table in spades. Whilst it’s now a blur the first time I saw them, one thing that sounds out is whilst I remember thinking it wasn’t really my style, I had this infectious ear-worm well and truly burrowed deep in my head for more than a week following the show – I was hooked. The other vivid memory of that night was just how polished their performance was, with front-man Michael Murphy effortlessly corralling the audience and connecting with them that many bands often lack.
Since then, each outing has seen them upping the ante; both in songwriting, staging/lighting, and the performance – so when I heard that the band “was pulling out all the stops” for tonights final “Kings Arms” show I knew it was going to be special – and we weren’t disappointed – beyond a mere stage extension we had a full catwalk extending the stage into the middle of the Arms and all bands used it to full effect. Now, the Kings Arms itself is a reasonably mid-sized venue, but when you throw a catwalk in front of the stage it suddenly gets smaller, or harder to navigate at least – the only downside of the catwalk in my view was a lack of lighting positioned towards the head – so people were either backlit, or barely lit at all.
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves – first up tonight is LIIT – Long Island Ice Tea, going in tonight my only knowledge of the band is bassist Bailey Roiall (Bam Bam) formerly of Helgorithms and that LIIT was a stark contrast in styles.
Thinking back I’m finding it difficult to describe LIIT – visual excess and spectacle, over the top high energy antics, condoms being thrown into the crowd, Bam Bam shooting his load of silly-string everywhere, and a mix of punk/rock (or should that be spunk rock) and pent-up sexuality. Highlights include the song “Gay Bar” with catching, but questionable content and two raucous covers of “Fight for your right” and the classic New Zealand hit “Bliss” by Th’ Dudes. There’s one thing for sure, for being the first time being introduced to them – they certainly leave a lasting impression, and as the opening act for the night they set the bar so high I’m wondering just how well the rest will stack up…
…and next up is Fallstate – I’m only vaguely familiar with the band due to recent lineup changes including guitarist Grady Gottler moving on from local death metal stalwarts Silent Torture – bringing a melodic pop/punk sound with elements of thrash/hardcore – well played and tight but unfortunately it’s a genre that never really grabbed my attention growing up, so whilst the set was fun – as a followup to LIIT felt a little lack-lustre, but one I’d be keen on checking out again for a second opinioning.
Shifting tone again it’s time for She Loves You – following up an excellent outing with His Master’s Voice last week, She Loves You return to the Kings Arms for round two. There’s no denying the chemistry between guitarist Jessie Booth and singer Madeline Berry – both working the stage effortlessly, locking heads serenading one another in what is now an obvious signature move. Despite a few minor technical issues we were treated to another killer set, taking full advantage of the catwalk we even saw bassist Cassandra King joining Madeline front-and-centre and presenting herself more to the audience – it’s may seem a small thing, but she seemed to be more “with the band” tonight and that’s always good.
Lights out… time to howl….
Tribal-like drumming opens the show from either side of the extended stage as Bahador Borhani and Davie Wong lay the foundation for what we’ve all come for – Written By Wolves and their final Kings Arms show. It’s a somewhat sombre feeling as it sinks in that this is the first of what will be many ‘final shows’ as the band kicks in that feel shifts into what I can only now say is a total blur – it’s often hard to concentrate on the music when trying to capture photos, but when you love the music it’s equally hard to concentrate on taking photos – an unfortunate catch-22 (first world music lover problems huh?).
I mentioned at the start how much I’ve always been impressed with Michael Murphy and his ability to connect with the crowd, but when you add the catwalk – it’s a whole new dimension to the show, combine this with an excess of CO2 stage smoke flooding the building, strobes, and a whole barrage of lighting Written By Wolves threw one hell of a send-off for the Kings Arms.
With such a send-off – surprises are often par for the course, and tonight we were treated to a mini-Shotgun Alley reunion with original vocalist RJ Kairua and bassist Josh Grant Betty flying over from Australia.
Sadly, as all things must – as the show came to close, I knew something was missing, and sure enough, the calls for encores rang out – and blam – we’re back with Genius – the energy, the blur, I’m standing here in the thick of the crowd, joined by members of the opening acts, family members of the band, and I’m in that happy place of belonging – almost like a pack, and now we wait for the next full moon.
Written By Wolves:
She Loves You:
LIIT:
Fallstate:
Were you there at The Kings Arms for this fun rock gig? Or have you seen Written By Wolves perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!
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