Once again, I must admit to being drawn to a band largely on the strength of their name. Carolina Liar - where did that one come from? Well, a little research revealed that lead singer and guitarist - and while we're on the subject of names - the almost impossibly named Chad Wolf, originally hails from Charleson, South Carolina, so we're starting to see a connection here. Quite how he managed to get to Sweden and meet up with the rest of the band, I'm less sure about, but I'm very glad he did, because on Monday night at Cabaret Voltaire, these boys put on a cracking show.
Carolina Liar have been on my radar for a wee while, as the sweetly anthemic "Show me what I'm looking for" has had quite a bit of radio airplay over the summer. I missed them at T in the Park - on far too early at King Tut's on Sunday - so was really glad to have the chance to see them as part of The Edge line up. I wasn't entirely sure how they were all going to fit onto Cab's compact and bijou stage, given the official band line-up runs six strong, but with only four members out to play, it was all good.
Right from the word go, Chad Wolf had the crowd revved up and ready to party. Any thoughts of this being an easy listening, ballad filled set were quickly dispatched as the band started rocking out.
Live, these guys sound much edgier than the smooth radio edits and downloadable tracks I'd previously heard, and it was a really kickass performance. As well as the title track from their debut album "Coming to Terms", we were treated to "California Bound", "Better Alone", "I'm Not Over", and "Beautiful World". By the time they got around to performing "Show me what I'm looking for", the whole place was bouncing. Best of all, they really looked as if they were enjoying the gig as much as we were.
I'd heard these guys being talked about in the same breath as The Killers and Kings of Leon, which I have to say I was a bit sceptical about, but after Monday, I'd have to say they wouldn't be too far out of their depth in that company. And if hard work counts for anything, they certainly deserve a lot of success - as well as T, they were at V Festival, then played Reading & Leeds, before they head back to the States for a really heavy looking tour schedule over the next couple of months. So, good luck guys, and thanks for a really great night - see you next year at T!
c. Faye Gibb, 2009
Performance was on 24 August 2009