CONCERT:

Club is too small a setting for band's intense dance grooves

By Damon Seeley

Daily Bruin Contributor

British technopunk artists Republica made a good showing at the sold-out Whiskey on Thursday night, but it was unfortunately a forgettable one. In town to promote their self-titled debut album, the group suffered as a result of a tiny set list and a bad choice of venue.

Opening bands Thin Lizzard Dawn and Love in Reverse, both nouveau grunge rockers, were monotonous at best. Love in Reverse lead singer/guitarist Michael Ferentino proved to audiences that if angsty young musicians could have intercourse with their guitars, they surely would. Both openers set the stage for an audience-re-capturing performance by Republica.

The band seized this opportunity with flair and, after a minimal amount of banter, opened up with their second U.S. single, "Drop Dead Gorgeous." Lyrics like "My ex-boyfriend lies/ I know he does it every time/ It's his permanent disguise/ But he's drop dead gorgeous ..." proved the perfect track to set a tone in LA and were played at a blood-boiling pace. The song is an obvious success for the band and showcased their talents perfectly.

"Bloke" and "Bitch" felt too similar and almost blended into each other. Lead singer Saffron beautifully portrayed the persona both songs idealize and was all smiles, uttering "you better watch your back/ I'm gonna take you on" and "there's no regrets, make no mistake/ I want everything."

From here they moved to less noticeable tracks ­ "Get Off" and a surprisingly subdued rendition of "Picture Me," a confusing tune focused on idol worship.

"Ready to Go," Republica's first nationally released single, was performed with great style and updated noticeably to suit the club environment. With their so-called British mix of "Ready to Go", they replaced electric guitar riffs with heavy synth-ish hooks and grooves, elevating the song to a new level.

It was this single track that showcased Republica's ability to incorporate both high-energy, electronic aspects of club music with power chord-laden pop to create music that appeals to both club-hopping and radio masses. This was by far the show's climax.

Subsequent songs served as a denouement to the frenetic energy of "Ready to Go" and made heavy use of previously unshowcased musical talents on the part of guitarist Johnny Male and (count 'em) two keyboardists.

After the 40-minute set, Republica was gone and wasn't coming back for an encore.

Republica's short stage time stems from the fact that their entire body of work hails from one album. This was a determining factor in the show's feeling, as Republica left audiences wondering what character the band might have shown with more material.

Lead singer Saffron proved to have stage presence galore and showed fans that her twitchy, bad-girl image is in no way an MTV creation. At little over 5 feet tall and a mix of Nigerian, English, Portuguese and Chinese, she defies conventional definitions of "the frontwoman" and has truly joined the ranks of charismatic female leads such as Gwen Stefani of No Doubt.

However, Republica's sound was unfortunately deadened by the Whiskey's stiflingly tiny acoustic environment. Keyboard arpeggios resounded off walls, yearning for a venue that fit Republica's growing popularity. The resulting sound was a little too thick to express the nuances of Republica's well-crafted hooks.

While their roots are smaller club scenarios, Republica seems to understand what they are best at. Fans can only hope management picks up on this next time the band visits L.A. and gives them a chance to make their sound bristle and shine like it should.

RCA Records

British dance sensation Republica, (l. - r.) Saffron, Andy Todd and Tim Dorney, played the Whiskey on Thursday.