Tuesday, April 14, 1998
British femme-fatale band throws concertgoers for a curve
MUSIC: Hybrid electronic duo deals with mixed reception in
United States
By Trinh Bui
Daily Bruin Contributor
Three years removed from a temporary break-up, British
electro-pop band Curve appeared at the intimate Troubadour for a
splintering gig Friday. Packed with a brand-new bag of tricks off
their latest full-length album, "Come Clean," Curve managed to
stitch crunching, dirty guitars with blunt beds of electronic
ramblings.
For the vixen-fronted, guitar-heavy and multi-textured Curve,
comprised of Toni Halliday and Dean Garcia, the ride that is Curve
has driven them to European success and stateside mediocrity. Their
hot-on-one-side, cold-on-the-other-side-of-the-Atlantic dilemma saw
Curve play big venues one month and holes-in-the-wall the next. The
constant shifting from making it big and trying to break in
personas left the group emotionally drained, eventually leading to
a 1994 "hiatus." After testing the solo waters with different bands
and organizing their lives, the two Brits regrouped for another go.
This time around Curve recorded tracks relying more on an
industrial, drum ‘n’ bass and ambient hybrid.
Playing a few selected U.S. dates, Curve’s altered sonic guise
seemed accepted by their fans, at least in Los Angeles. Before
Curve took the small stage, opening DJ and electronic artist Freaky
Chakra spun tracks off his newest disc, "Blacklight Fantasy."
Afro-puffed Chakra specializes in darkish drum ‘n’ bass, with a
smidgen of happier big beat bass beats. The San Francisco native
spun in vain as the nearly packed room opted to stand and watch
than move and groove. Freaky Chakra played for literally just two
citrus-colored dressed kids who figured out electronic equals
dancing not gawking.
Chakra’s demeanor onstage failed to help his cause as he elected
to concentrate on his samplers rather than encouraging the crowd to
dance. One onlooker suggested that Chakra needed only 30 minutes to
bore the audience. "Year 2000," mercifully ended Chakra’s night on
a melodiously anemic tone.
To the casual attendee, the pairing of Chakra and Curve seems
inappropriate. But the pairing really says how much Curve embraces
the fusion between traditional and electronic music, a mixture
Curve has been producing since the early ’90s. The four-piece band
led by Halliday and Garcia came onstage in a bath of roars and
cheers. The delicate-looking Halliday in a black dress especially
excited the male contingency.
Early on, Curve suffered from audio difficulties; Halliday’s
microphone caught a lot of feedback and her vocals came off
distorted. She was noticeably angry, often directing dagger glances
at the sound engineer to get it under control. Once the sound
problems were fixed, Curve blasted away full throttle, delivering
sonic booms of distortion and fuzzy guitar riffs.
"Chinese Burn," the first single off "Clean," teased with
Halliday’s seductively alluring vocals behind a canvas of blended
electronic strokes, thick bass backbeat bridged together with
guitar interludes that put Garbage to shame.
Being the forebears of femme-fatale rock, Curve dips every song
in a sticky film of sexed-out tension, wrapped in abrasive melodies
and delivered through Halliday’s ache-wrenching mouth. Such
seduction influenced "Coming Up Roses," a mongrel ditty inbreeding
industrial and drum ‘n’ bass with pop, creating a catchy tune
worthy of praise.
Halliday kept chitchat to humble "thank yous," but she took the
time to autograph a piece of paper for a loyal fan. Not everything
worked out Curve’s way, for the overabundance of fog and excessive
lighting effects veiled the band in refracted light. More often
than not, the guitars and drums overpowered the vocals, making them
almost unrecognizable to the human ear.
However, imitating life, Curve played through the difficulties
to deliver a sharp, crisp hour-and-a-half session, ending the night
with a rousing encore, including their version of a slow love song,
"Die Like a Dog."
Anxious Records
Members of British band Curve Toni Halliday (left) and Dean
Garcia played the Troubadour on Friday.