While Australian trio Sick Puppies and one other band on the marquee at the Golden State Mall on Feb. 23 displayed virtuosity, there wasn’t anything that any of the groups had to offer that hasn’t already been done before.
Sick Puppies, whom I personally hadn’t heard of before the performance but seemed to have a steady fan base that knew their lyrics, had a solid rhythm section. The bass player in particular had some nifty riffs and was not lacking in ability.
However, the singer whined on with juvenile angst about relationships and other lyrical content that makes prepubescent children swoon, reducing the ensemble to a state of mediocrity.
The only great song they played was a Muse cover, while the only creative thing they played was a mix between a Green Day riff and the words to “Say My Name” by Destiny’s Child, which for me was like putting live cockroaches in a puke smoothie.
Two things that are horrible by themselves will be even more horrible when you put them together.
I may not have been a fan of the music, but I will say Sick Puppies seemed genuine in their discourse with the audience. They delivered an energetic performance that made the crowd of hundreds feel like a crowd of 1,000. Upon the singer’s request, the audience would jump around like rabid rabbits to the band’s aggressive power chords.
Sick Puppies had a genuine element, but Raising Abel, which preceded them, seemed very disingenuous. Their singer felt the need to pander to the Bakersfield crowd between songs like you know he would if he were in New York City or in Billings, Mont.
Each of their songs seemed to bleed into one another, each sounding as if Creed collaborated with Lifehouse.
Some songs attempted to bring in elements of different genres, but only mustered the ability to brush over the genre rather than fully incorporate it. After their failed effort, the song would relegate itself back to more run-of-the-mill active rock in the chorus.
Bakersfield natives Meditated Assault had the pieces for a great group. The lead guitarist had some awesome licks and a commanding stage presence.
They were a tight-knit ensemble with the propensity to rock. And while they did in fact rock, that’s all they could really do. There was nothing profound or tongue-in-cheek about the lyrics and wailing guitars can only be cool for so long.
Fading Out Of Silence, the first band to perform, was simply pitiful. I almost feel bad criticizing them. The Tehachapi group was without a bassist and a drummer, and they were requesting members of the audience to audition for the open positions after the show. They even asked the crowd if some of them could help take down their instruments so the next act could set up. Not even the decent keyboard effects could hide the uninspired suburban crybaby rock. At least they had rehearsed material.
Maybe the groups just weren’t my style of music. Music, like all art, is subjective, after all. Maybe I’m just an artsy-fartsy, out-of-touch hipster, and I’m expecting too much from a concert at the Golden State Mall. I just feel that good music is music that tries to break away from the shackles of tradition and doesn’t embrace the status quo.