OK, Geoff, TTS appreciates your hard work, epic gig-going ability and prolific nature on a Monday morning, but for your own health, you’re getting gagged until further notice right after this review. A cup of tea is being snail-mailed en-route to you now as a consolation.
Adequate Geoff wrote:
Well Codes, it’s been a while, hasn’t it? Last time I saw you, you were a different band. You had lineup changes and you certainly didn’t sound like this. Is the change for the better? Well…
The band emerge after a noisy and light-filled empty stage full of equipment hisses at the crowd for a full two minutes. They launch into new track The Known World and it is very good indeed, being louder and more progressive than expected. Singer Darragh is cocksure, but honestly thankful to the supportive hundreds. There are some great moments onstage where the music and visuals connect beautifully. The post-rock moments are especially enjoyable and when they do this, they do it very, very well. Unfortunately, when they do their pop moments they really do bear resemblance to bland ol’ junks himself. Not that they’re anything wrong with Pop music, but this Pop music sounds so similar to that Pop music that comparisons are both predictable and unavoidable. Between sounding like Keane and Explosions In The Sky, Codes become less like a band forging a unique path than one still searching for definition.
Regardless, the performance is brilliant and the tracks are impressively bellowed throughout the halls of The Academy (which really is a great venue these days). Codes save their best 3 tracks (Malfunctions, ThisIsGoodbye, 4Winters) for the encore and when they finish up, there is a genuine feeling that this is one of the best bands in the country at the moment. The best? Possibly. We’ll find out what the critics (who get paid to) think decide in two days’ time.
Well that was enlightening, Geoff. Back in your cage, now.
Codes play at the Choice Music Award 2010 ceremony in Vicar Street this Wednesday, March 3rd.
