Wednesday 17/03/10 Is Tropical, Teeth @ Thekla, Bristol

First on are Teeth. Teeth are a Hackney hipster band, yes another one of those, who list their manifold influences as ranging from Suicide and Throbbing Gristle to, err.. Aqua. This, shall we call it musical confusion, is reflected in their songs. They have one guy man-handling his laptop, a tiny girl screaming her lungs out and a drummer, who pounds the shit out of those poor skins. However, even though the ingredients might sound intriguing, the final product is more than disappointing. An incoherent mish-mash of static beats, distorted noise and indecipherable squealing. Arty? Maybe. Annoying? Definitely.



Is Tropical on the other hand more than make up for the underwhelming opening performance. They launch straight into an unpolished onslaught of jangly guitars and beats that are equally soaked in summer vibes and warehouse rave memories. Bass-heavy raw pop and exceptionally dynamic melodies make Is Tropical a spectacle to listen to, their mask covered faces giving the live show a threatening edge. Their refreshingly inventive chirpy freak-pop showcases the vitality of a brasher and bolder Metronomy paired with The Coral and some very loopy noisy post-punk band.

Is Tropical aren’t afraid to mix things up a bit with ridiculously playful lo-fi, obscurely Tetris-sounding tunes and reverb-heavy hissed out/blissed out vocals, they demonstrate their unique brand of unstrung, fuzz layered power-pop. ‘I’ll Take My Chances’ and ‘Seasick Mutiny’ are gems in the rough but it’s first single ‘When Oh When’ that really shows that Is Tropical have it all: the playful obscurity of art-pop, the brazenness of noise, the deliberate nostalgia of sea shanties and the futuristically accurate beats of a Timbaland production. This London three piece show their touring partners how to do shambolic without being a shambles.