Sunday 17/10/04 Six by Seven @ The Cockpit, Leeds

October 26, 2004 by Bill Bedford

Rarely is anything written about Six by Seven these days without reference to words such as “survivors” or “veterans”. If enough people cared, you might call these clichés, serving only to patronise this noble institution of a band. But no one does care. Perhaps Six by Seven owe their descent into obscurity to an inability to be pigeonholed, being too direct and unpretentious to fit the “art-rock” tag they are often given and far too intense and uncompromising to succeed within the lily-livered norms of the mainstream. They’re a contradictory bunch: a great band with an embarrassingly modest fan base; ugly blokes approaching middle age who make beautiful, vital music; a recently slimmed down bass-less trio with a gigantic, overwhelming sound.

Sometimes watching Six by Seven is like supporting a failing football team, urging them on in the face of misfortune and indifference. Last time your correspondent saw the band they played to a feeble audience in Liverpool’s Carling Academy. The turnout was frankly (to borrow a phrase from singer Chris Olley on set highlight 'Cafeteria Rats'), a ****ing disgrace. Thankfully tonight they get at least some of the respect they deserve. From opener 'Around', a fantastic new song surprisingly absent from the recent '04' album, to the seismic finale of 'European Me', the crowd are receptive and the band clearly appreciate it. The noise levels gradually edge towards the pain threshold, as if to punish the apathetic for their indifference, and the number of audience members swaying in thrall to the music increases accordingly, falling in line like the mindless clones we are.

Since the departure bass player Paul Douglas, the use of samples prevents the band from performing any of the howling punk barnstormers from 'The Way I Feel Today' LP. Instead their songs fall roughly into two camps: pounding noise pop euphoria such as 'Catch the Rain' and 'Candle Light', and creeping drone-rockers like 'Ten Places to Die' and 'Sometimes I Feel Like'. Whatever the tempo, there is no room for arty excess here, the band choosing instead to bludgeon the listener into submission with repeated hooklines and heartfelt lyrics. Though the use of electronica on their latest album seems a largely cosmetic exercise, a deeper kinship with dance music can be seen in the peaks and troughs of their repetitive, layered sound.

So I guess, to risk cliché, you’d have to say that tonight Six by Seven triumphed over adversity. The band’s dwindling fortunes are living proof, if any were needed, of the general stupidity of people.