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Live Review from Underground 90:
1. Mission
2. Miracles
3. See ya later
4. Princess
5. I am fine
6. You are the one
Speaka are a four-piece band that stated in their bio that they have a variety of musical styles, from typical UK styles to college punk, so I was interested in finding out more about them. I also found out that they are one of the few bands that didn’t apply to play at the Underground, but were invited by Chris B. She assured me that they were something special.
As Speaka approached the stage, the lead singer, Ben, announced his drunkedness to the crowd and he yelled confidently “We’re Speaka!” Then, they started the first song which had the speed and energy of a Blink 182 song. The lead guitarist, Fai, led this punk song with his awesome rock stance and all of the members looked very confident on the stage. Ben’s voice got better as he warmed into the chorus and he had the words ringing in my head, “What I left behind.” I was wondering if this was a love song? Next thing I know the song was finished and the Melting Pot was crowded with people clapping in applause.
Ben introduced the second song to us, ‘Miracles’. and he told us that this was the first song that they had created since they had formed the band. There were a few oohs and ahs at the start of the song which I thought could have done without, but once they got into the verse I was hooked. This song had a different style than the first, something more akin to ‘Five for Fighting’ or ‘Live’. The song played out as expected and the band members melded back into a cooler stance.
Their 3rd song, “See ya later” was yet another song of a different style. It was still Pop rock, – but the influence came from another source. There seemed to be one thing that linked all of the songs together. I could be wrong. But, I have a feeling they all about girls. And why not? Girls can be very influential on young men, especially me. This song seemed like it ended abruptly or was it that we the audience just wanted to hear more of it?
They moved onto their next song, “Princess”, which started off very Muse-esque. Yet, this time Ben played the piano which added a new element to their band. It’s always nice to have some versatility. The audience bopped along enthusiastically while we were drawn into another uplifting yet moody song led by Ben on piano. Once he got to the piano it seemed like most of the attention from the audience had drawn to him. He finished the song beautifully with a solo piano outro that really did it for me.
They introduced the next song, “I am fine”, as having a music video. Ben said it was a sad song, but to me it was yet another moody dark song in their repertoire. He continued playing the piano. This song had a great chorus. All of the instruments were in perfect timing with each other and Shinji the drummer even added some harmony to Ben’s vocals. It really made this song “Jeng!” I really enjoyed the guitar trills in this song after the chorus.
Their last song of the night, ‘You are the one’, was yet another love song. Ben began to play the keys and sing, almost like James Blunt. The song started off slowly with just the keys until a minute later when the whole band kicked in. This was another nice song which finished off their set. I was quite impressed with their delivery and their different tastes in style. It was good to see a quality band start off the night.
Cain (F.B.I. vocalist)
Click here to watch Speaka playing their original song: You Are The One!
