The Belgian band do not disappoint and we get a superb opening act to boot!
Everything is running late tonight and sound checking is still going on nearly twenty minutes after doors were supposed to open. Luckily it didn’t affect the start times for the actual sets. Every time we have been to The Lexington in the last year it has been at capacity but is a much more select crowd tonight. It is a shame, Ronker deserved the sort of sweaty mosh pit that Gans generated when we were here about a year ago. There are a number of people present who caught them at 2000 Trees though, once seen you will be a believer.
Test Plan
Well the crowd could have been bigger, but everyone down for the start time got treated to a phenomenal set from an incredibly talented band. The drummer was also the lead singer. It was an absolute blast from start to finish. The intensity on show was immense.
Max Mason is a full on drummer, barely ever letting up, pounding set of rhythms after pounding set of rhythms. He gets the emotion across in his vocals as well, living every second of their sound. Michalis (Mike) Fragkiadakis (guitar) and Rory Dickinson (bass) both seem like they are having a huge amount of fun on stage and with tracks this good in the locker, why wouldn’t you be? They start with ‘Teeth,’ a heavy slab of post-punk with paranoia shot through the vocals.
The next two tracks are not released but are ones to look forward to. Most recent single ‘Gone’ sounds ten times better live, and it sounds pretty decent recorded. ‘Walking In A Vacuum’ shows a Gans like ability to blur the line between moshing and dancing. The far too short set ends with ‘So Bored At Your Squat Rave.’ Everyone present knows they just saw something special. They have less than a 1,000 followers on Spotify right now. That cannot stay like that. There is magic here, this is why we love live music – getting completely blown away by something when we had no inkling of how good it was going to be.
The Sad Season
Well follow that Sad Season. In fairness, a lot of much bigger bands could have gone on next and been shown up. The Sad Season put on a game performance, though it would have been considerably better had they been having a better evening with the vocal levels. Normally, the sound is awesome here, but Mikee Goodman keeps asking for the level to go up and nothing happens. On record Goodman has a distinctive voice, like a 500 cigarettes a day voice. In fairness, I am not sure why he didn’t just grab the other on stage mic as that seemed to be working fine. It is a shame, as we enjoyed the one EP they have released before we saw them tonight.
This is slower, more controlled rock music. There is groove, attitude and classic rock contained within.
Ronker
Ronker’s frontman Jasper De Petter was down the front for both the previous two sets, right at the front. It speaks to the love of music that shines through in their work. They come on stage to Justin Timberlake’s ‘Sexyback’ which tells you everything about their confidence and their sense of humour. They barrel straight into the excellent title track from their last album, ‘Respect The Hustle,’ a genius slice of speed-noise rock. The guitars get given a serious at pace workout tonight. ‘Kennedy’ from their debut album keeps the energy levels high.
It just keeps on rolling with ‘No Sweat.’ Ronker are a tight unit, all parts of the machine deliver. Despite that, your eye is constantly drawn to De Petter. When he doesn’t have a guitar in his hand he is all over the stage with the microphone, clambering on monitors and flight cases, getting down on his haunches. I keep expecting him to disappear into the crowd, but it never happens.
De Petter was also impressed by the opening act, “What about Test Plan? I was watching that and thinking I have to follow that!” Ronker are a good enough band to hold their own with the crowd. They dip into their debut EP from 2023 for ‘Shame’ before the intense speed-fest that is ‘HIIT.’
De Petter reveals he does not drink alcohol anymore. Given the number of tracks relating to drugs, both ‘Disco Dust’ and ‘Snuff’ carry a real punch tonight, you have to wonder how much of the lyrics are deeply personal. “Addiction doesn’t discriminate. Addiction doesn’t give a f**k.” Was it an enforced end to all substances, before it got too bad to cope anymore? It is good that the band are healthy and focused now.
“In a couple of songs we are going to play an Oasis cover. It is kind of like your national anthem, no?” In a bold move they break out a section of ‘Wonderwall,’ it is a bit closer to the original than the Bring Me The Horizon cover, but remains heavy.
This is a very solid performance from a band with some real spark and talent. Like with their recent album ‘Snuff’ is an absolute emotional highlight. When they return to the UK they deserve bigger crowds and proper pits.
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