So The Thermals are pretty damn good. That's established, it's a given. Hedgehog are one of the Four Great Inventions to come out of China - them, Subs, gunpowder and something else. Seriously, look it up. Put them together and you've got a recipe for mayhem. Unless, of course, you put them on on a Thursday night and charge 100 kuai on the door. Then you've got a recipe for an occasional bit of jumping and moshing. Apparently the B-Side Lovers and Thermals show in Beijing was half empty on Wednesday night and it wasn't much better here in Shanghai. It was an alright crowd, but not what either band deserved. What was that about Modern Sky? Wednesday night in Beijing, Thursday in Shanghai? At those prices?
Anyway, The Thermals were... fuckin' a, but this blog isn't about bands like them - there's plenty of better places to read about how good they are. We're here for the Chinese stuff, so how were Hedgehog with their new lineup? The truth is, if you shut your eyes, you wouldn't have known there was anything different. Atom was still incredible on the drums, Zo was on fire on the guitar and the new bassist held his own with them. Admittedly, they played essentially a greatest hits set and thus it was hard to tell where they'll go from here, but they nevertheless excelled with the classics.
The sound was good and the band was tight. Although I always felt the bassist was a bit of an unsung hero in the band, the attention has always naturally fallen on Zo (as the frontman) and Atom (due to her undeniable prowess on the drums), but it seems it will even more so now. Still, I'm looking forward to the new material and this was a strong showing, albeit on pretty safe ground. For those who knew the songs, it was a great set. For those who didn't, hopefully they won some new fans - bring on the new album.
Sounds like a decent night, sad I missed it.
J.