jeudi 9 Aoû 2007, 12h44m

Sat 2 Dec – Skeleton Key
I'd been intrigued by Skeleton Key since my wife found a copy of their self-titled EP in a thrift store. The clanking, wheezing machine of macabre noise appealed to my dark humour so I casually sought out their other releases. This concert made me a rabid fan, however.
We arrived quite early, and sat at the bar beside Erik Sanko and the rest of the band for quite a long time, not brave enough to approach them and say hi, though I did raise a beer to him which he acknowleged with a grin. Had I known what a nice guy he is I probably would have bought them all a round or two.
Stolen Babies were a little odd, with a nice quirkiness that was a little too much image and not enough musical substance. Their lyrics could do with some imagination and a little less repetition, but I did find myself humming some of their melodies a few days later.
As for Skeleton Key, Erik is an astounding, energetic musician; the top of his head seemed to hinge backwards as he howled the chorus to "Spineless" or "Little Monster," and his bass continued to roar with that special SK funk the whole time. Craig handled his peculiar guitar sounds with ease as the two stringmen bobbed and weaved on the cramped stage, and Sean ticked consistently, tucked away in the back corner. Ben though, was a fiery bashing machine - literally. During part of the set he brought out a grinder which showered sparks across the stage, and at another point he pounded mightily on a slab of iron with a hammer. As impressive as the showiness of this was, what was really staggering was when it clicked that he was still playing an instrument - the sounds he produced matched those recorded on the studio versions of the songs they played.
This is a band that I will go and see at any time, in any place, if it's at all possible for me to get to the gig, and this was the gig that turned me into that kind of a fan.