The Gossip / Yo Majesty / Dolorata @ Bottom of the Hill, 6 April 2007

Dolorata have a metal sound. They also have a skunk-haired second guitarist, a solid drummer who’s not afraid to play the cowbell, a violinist with mad staring eyes dressed like Patti Smith on the cover of Horses, a rock solid bass player in a very non rock’n’roll skirt, and a leader/singer/guitarist with a great scream. I liked it when all three guitarist lined up in a classic hard rock pose. This band made me smile.

Yo Majesty (above) are a trio of rappers who hit the somewhat rockist Bottom of the Hill like a bucket of espresso. They were shouting and swearing and removing bits of clothing. They were pretty upset that everyone wasn’t dancing more but eventually some sort of equilibrium was reached. The show eventually peters out after some sort of hardware problem which involved a laptop. Although Yo Majesty are a rap group this was one of the most punk shows I have seen in a long time.

The Gossip have a format a bit like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs: charismatic singer + inventive guitarist + excellent drummer = rock. Beth Ditto mixes powerful vocals with funny stories told in a curious little girl from Arkansas voice. For their super hit Standing In The Way Of Control she invades the crowd and the place was in tumult. Guitarist Brace Paine has some very unusual poses but provides enough guitar for several bands. Great band, nice show.