Gyroscope, Ruby’s Lounge, Round 2.

I’ve noticed this sites been getting a little bit lowbrow lately with all the youtube vids (Sorry Count), so I’ve decided to put my review of Gyroscope’s gig up.

I last saw Gyroscope at Ruby’s Lounge back in 2006 and even though the crowd was relatively small we stood out enough to get a song dedicated to “Those poor guys that have to work tomorrow”. I also meet the band in Ruby’s back stage area (behind a secret bookcase) where Count Knuckles chatted to them about their last album ‘Are you involved?’.

Even though I’ve seen them plenty of times since then (4 and counting), that gig still remains my most memorable and I therefore had high expectations when I heard that Gyroscope would be traveling to Ruby’s again in 2008.

After finding out that they wouldn’t be hitting the stage till 11:15 (groan) I only arrived to catch a few songs from Melbourne band Trial Kennedy. While their overall set was full of impressive rock beats the highlight came during their last song when Gyroscope’s lead singer Daniel Sanders joined them on stage to provide some backup singing. A couple of audience members also deciding to jump in on the act and provided some surprisingly decent vocals before they were dragged off stage by the security guards.

Following a delayed start Rob (drums), Brad (bass), Zoran (guitar) and Daniel (lead vocals, guitar) finally made their way up to the stage via a quick bypass through the crowd. After giving them a congratulatory pat on the back they kicked things off with Fast Girl. From the start of the set, Daniel was determined to literally make his mark on the venue after he hung off the stage curtain and nearly tore it down. He then proceeded to suspend his guitar from the roof after smashing it into the same spot that he had last time he played at Ruby’s (it still had the Gaffa tape there to prove it).

While I was initially expected Gyroscope to fully demo their upcoming album Breed Obsession they instead opted to play a broad range of material including 22 of 3, Confidence in confidentiality, Take this for granted and Are you getting any better?

Specific highlights of the night included their energetic album opener Don’t look now but I think I’m sweating blood which lived up to its namesake by having everyone intensely sweating it out in the mosh pit. Audience participation has always been a strong point of Gyroscope gigs and they didn’t disappoint when they provided vocal support to Daniel’s distinct crooning chorus during songs like A Slow Dance. Their biggest hit of the night Save Forever also had 200 + people perfectly singing in unison with the anthem “I did it for you girl!”. Older material like Driving For the Storm and Hallow Like Cheyenne also which went down well with longterm fans who could be distinguished by their ability to cite every lyric verbatim.

Quite only descended upon the patrons when they were absorbed into the atmospheric tunes of Raindrops, Dream Vs Scream and Sexxxy. These heartfelt ballads captivated the audience and demonstrated that Gyroscope are equal capable of delivering slower melodic numbers as well as harder hitting ones. They also showcased Daniel’s superb vocal ability and distinct dictation singing style which is always a pleasure to hear live. It was also interesting to hear him experiment with some reverb and echo effects which helped add some extra depth to the songs.

The atmosphere was then cranked up another two notches when the epic single Snakeskin was performed. The signature guitar hooks, breakdowns and catchy lyrics had the whole crowd absorbed and everyone gave a fantastic cheer when Zoran thanked them for voting it to an impressive # 16 spot on this years Triple J Hottest 100 countdown.

While I wasn’t originally sold on the electronic driven sound of their latest single 1981, after a couple of live listens I’m now completely addicted. While the synthesiser sounding drum beat gave it a slow pop style start it wasn’t long before memorable guitar work and a catchy chorus took hold of the crowd and had them bouncing with exuberance.

This was contrasted with another new track which was aptly titled O.K. The general lack of speed and energy didn’t really make it stand out, but it will probably grow on me after a few more listens. Due to some poorly timed guitar static I couldn’t make out the title of I think the other new song of the night was titled Weapon. Enemy. Friend  and had the whole band feeding off each other with thundering guitar riffs and powerhouse drumming.

The hour long set with concluded with the ever popular heavy hitting screaming classic Doctor Doctor and a surprise rendition of Nirvana’s Territorial Pissing which brought back fond memories of the days when I also used to sing the lines “Just because they’re paranoid, doesn’t meen they’re not watching you”.

Gyroscope then proved that they’re a ‘band for the people’ after Daniel sauntered into the crowd and played a guitar solo while being swamped by rabid photographers.

Overall this leg of the appropriately titled Pre Obsession tour impressed both new and old fans alike and confirmed that 2008 will finally be the year that Gyroscope will hit the big time. It’s about bloody time because in Daniel’s words “I’m already obsessed”.