Longwave

with Cat Size Thrill

Smith’s Olde Bar, Atlanta, GA • September 25, 2000

Roi J. Tamkin

Monday’s New Faces Night was one of the best-attended I have seen in a long time. Three acts who have never played Atlanta before were set to audition before a crowd including supporters and parents. The first band, Cat Size Thrill, was the reason for the large numbers. This Athens band took most of the crowd with them when they finished playing. That was too bad, because New York City’s Longwave put on a decent debut.

The four-piece band features drums, bass, two guitars and one thousand foot pedals. The opening instrumental was an atmospheric piece that put all those pedals to use. One guitarist crouched over his effects and twisted knobs while the other hunched over his guitar strumming as fast as his scrawny fingers could go. The band kicked in to their alternative music set, but the singer’s voice sounded weak. Later, he announced that he was struggling with a cold, so I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt that he has a larger vocal range. Most of the songs were effects-laden, backed with rhythmic drums that made the music somewhat hypnotic. I felt that the few songs that were not loaded down with flange and distortion were actually the boring ones.

The instrumental breaks are not filled with riffs or fancy licks, but long, wailing notes and more of that speed strumming with both guitarists hunching their backs and swaying by their amps, mining for that precious feedback. These young lads have just released a CD, and they were very excited at the prospect of selling their new T-shirts, to boot. I hope these boys get another chance to play Atlanta again so I can hear the singer when he’s over the cold. Or maybe the cold was just an excuse to play the pedals. ◼