I will occasionally blog about different fronters who I dig. They might be big stars or small timers who I see in the Melbourne pub scene or might spot on the net somewhere.
My first ‘Fronters I dig’ post will be about a two piece band that feature two fronters. Called Digger and the Pussycats they are an explosive noisy outfit. Their music is great, guitars aplenty and a quirky vibe on the vocals. What makes these guys so good is that both the members Sam Agostino (Guitar, vox) and Andy Moore (Drums, Vox) are so damned inspired and fired up during gigs. Watching Digger and the Pussycats you get the feeling that anything can happen.
One of the great things about this band is that even tho there are only two people in it they have enough stage presence to match far larger bands. Sam and Andy rock the stage differently to one another but in a totally complimentary way.
Sam’s movements are tough and brutal. He plays the guitar in a way that looks like he is belting the poor object. And when he cuts into a solo his movements get even more exaggerated. One of his moves I really like might be called ’shocking guitar’. It’s like his left hand is stuck like glue onto the guitar neck whilst his right is trying to cut the strings apart like he’s desperately trying to free himself from the dangerous instrument in his hands (and the sounds are frightening). What makes this move so impressive is that his legs are planted on the ground effectively ‘earthing’ the ‘imaginary’ current whilst his face is contorted and his torso head shakes from side to side. I swear when he does this he howls a mighty “ARRGH” (away from the mic).
Sam has plenty of other standard rock moves – lots of pouts and guitar points. His persona during songs is a total “don’t f*** with me” arrogance (unlike his pleasant off stage demeanor) which suits the music down to the ground. He is a terrific guitar player too, for me quite unlike anyone else kicking around the Melbourne pub scene (tho I would suggest maybe Spencer P Jones and the guitar work by the Beasts of Bourbon might be an influence… then again I’m no guitar player).
Andy is an excitement machine, playing the drums standing up. This suits Andy as he his a big guy who radiates his need to be energetic whilst playing. In other bands he sits down playing drums which is kind of dangerous for him as he seems unable to sit still. I always liked to keep an eye on him during gigs to see how far off his stool he’d go and to see what weird angle he could play the drums. If I am not mistaken some fairly serious injuries have occurred due to his inability to sit (was he disciplined properly at school?)
Anyway his standup drumming is a terrific sight. A way to describe this playing is that he’s moshing – playing drums like he’s slam dancing getting dizzy and having a great time. His drumming is very powerful and provides a great platform for Sam to weave his (to use an painter’s name) Picassoesque guitar over the top. He gives of the impression that he is having an absolute ball playing and singing in a rock and roll band. Andy provides a nice vocal counterpoint to Sam with his higher pitched shouted yet at times quite melodic vocals.
Both of these guys are wonderful musos and as the music builds they tend to egg each other on. During Sam’s guitar solos one can find him amongst the punters and Andy jumps around so often you’d wonder if he was playing on hot coals. In a town where rock and roll bands don’t often get people dancing these guys do it cause they keep the crowd interested, entertained, and wondering what will happen next.
Both Sam and Andy are in other terrific bands. They are both in the Kamikaze Trio (with bass player Snoop Mitchell) and Sam plays in a party rock and roll band called the Russian Roulettes with some great musos the Melbourne scene: Tim Wold (Specimens) and Ago Soldati (Legends of Motorsport).
I could keep talking but I may as well link to something so that you can see what I am blubbering about. They are about to tour the United States so if you are out that way go check em out!
Oh and here is another link: live, sweaty and jerky (WARNING: contains coarse language).
