Gig Reviews: Jelutong and Karn8 @ Scamfest, Fleet (6th July 2003)

by Gordon Tebbutt

If you could catch and bottle a feeling you could become a rich man. Well I couldn't bottle the feeling I had after seeing the Karn8 and Jelutong at Scamfest, but I'll sure as hell give it my best shot to describe it to you. To start with let me tell you that I wasn't intending to review this gig. I went along purely because it was a nice day and because I like Karn8 and when theyre playing locally I often go to watch them. What I discovered is still making my head spin.

There was a line-up of bands before the main two that I didn't pay much attention to (sorry guys), but the first to catch my eye was Karn8.

Karn8

With a stand in drummer in tow, Karn8 roared on stage in a way I don't think I had seen from them (or heard maybe?) before. Their extending merchandise repertoire seemed to be snapped up before and after they played faster than a cheetah in a Ferrari. Kirsten, gorgeous as ever, seems to have grown alongside Bones to fill the stage, and have a new found bellow (for want of a better word) in her voice. With a cracking set including Karn8 mainstayers 'Past Caring' and 'Wicked Boy', Karn8 sent an already enthusiastic young crowd crazy. Karn8 are becoming gradually larger and larger. An awesome performance by Karn8! A band to watch out for.

Apparently they have a bunch of new material waiting to be used on the road once their new drummer has been chosen ("it not too late to audition" - says Bones.) so keep your eyes and ears well and truly open.

Jelutong

You remember that feeling I was talking about a minute ago? Jelutong were the cause! When you see a band, and your head starts bopping and the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, you know you're watching something memorable.

The Jelutong sound is something that I cant quite put my finger on. They're a smooth rock band, and I cant think of a better comparison than Audioslave. Don't get me wrong. They're not Audioslave and definitely not RATM, they're something new but I have that strange feeling that I've heard them before but cant put my finger on it. I definitely haven't heard them before and can only put that down to the 'why the hell haven't I seen these guys before' mentality.

The singer's voice was the main reason for the back hair raising. I quite often criticise bands for not having a strong singer… The Jelutong front man made me hugely jealous. With his roaring and soaring vocals, I could picture seeing them playing a stadium at some point in the future. I had a word with the guys afterwards, and apparently they're in talks with Virgin/EMI, which from my opinion of what I just heard, is justice! A real surprise for a gig I wasn't expecting much of, if I could have bought one of their CDs I would have! Check out their stuff - theyre awesome (have I said that ebough yet)

A 5/5 gig just for discovering Jelutong!