It’s quite something that, at a gig with three bands performing, the least strange name on the bill is Trupa Trupa. However, with Rights For Flies and Wizards Can’t Be Lawyers also on the bill at The Bodega last week, it’s difficult to argue the contrary...
I attended with my piano teacher and friend Yarislava – the nauseatingly talented pianist whose band Wilf Spiv & The Collective rounded off their recent UK tour with a performance at a Bonfire event that I hosted, along with two of the three bands we would be seeing tonight.
This was Wizards’ and Flies’ third performance on the same bill in recent months, having played the aforementioned bonfire shindig; the newly opened Mist Rolling Inn on Derby Road and now co-headlining and supporting respectively: the Polish mighty three-piece Trupa Trupa.
First up were the ten-piece art collective/cult band Rights For Flies. A single-issue band standing up for the invertebrates - the downtrodden. the wingless, and the spineless.
You get the feeling that, disorientating audiences; with costumes, projectors, antennas, face paint and placards; is a sort of delicious game they relish playing. The inclusion of earnest spoken-word poetry about the lifespans and habitats of various insects and arachnids is undoubtedly more charming than it should be.
The set was short but magnificent, and had the whole room dancing millipedes, and smiling from wing to throrax.
Their set included Fly Love, Biodiversity, Starlover* (name adjusted for prudence) and a joyous and energetic cover of TRex’s 20th Century Boy, replacing the word ‘boy’ with, yes, ‘fly’.
Lead singer Tobi’s delivery is humorous without being corny, and passionate without being threatening. Guitarist Elyiz – a talented artist and soundscaper in his own right – has just released a new eclectic electro album Wellington Street Weather, which is definitely worth a listen.
As a ten piece, it’s a headache to fit them all on the stage let alone making them sound as good as they do. Hats off to the engineers at The Bodega. Rights For Flies put the ‘cult’ in ‘difficult-to-sound-engineer-for’. The set was short but magnificent, and had the whole room dancing millipedes, and smiling from wing to throrax.
Second to grace the Bodega stage was three-piece Gdansk-based psychedelic post-punk band Trupa Trupa; the one band I hadn’t heard prior to tonight; but one for whom I will certainly be following from now on.
The band’s star is in its ascendancy, receiving rave reviews for their latest (sixth!) album from Pitchfork, The Times and MOJO; as well as earning deserved invitations to BBC 6 Music and KEXP sessions. In the words of the emaciated gremlin-king of rock and roll, Iggy Pop: “Trupa Trupa look to confront evil. This is a very strong band.”
With a nod to the energy and engagement of The Hives, and with a garnish of the Canadian post-punk band Ought (although, distinctly less-melancholic), their music asks a lot of questions, and revels in not necessarily providing the answers. It’s ominous and dystopian, yet, a pleasure to observe.
Lead singer Grzegorz Kwiatkowski (an excellent Scrabble score, if only permissible) intonates with his mouth wide open, as if to show the audience the lyrics that he’s written on his larynx. Repeated, impassioned, sometimes wild arm gestures from the front man make him appear seven feet tall and wide. He is a monster on stage.
The band effortlessly flit and change between time signature, in perfect unison… 7/8, 9/8, 5/4. I’m not usually a fan of music that regularly disrupts the 4/4 rhythms we’ve become so accustomed to. However, the uncomfortable, discordant bridges and beautiful jarring rhythms resolve so perfectly as to offer comfort amongst the disarray.
Trupa’s music appears on the face of it to be diametrically opposite to that of Rights For Flies; and yet, there are so many similarities. Chaotic yet organised. Captivating yet joyful. Their seven-person deficiency compared to RFF is more than made up by a buffet of effects pedals and ample on-stage presence.
Having shared co-headliner duties with Trupa Trupa the day before at The Grace in London, Wizards Can’t Be Lawyers (WCBL) wrapped up the show in their hometown with a stunning and varied setlist, including their latest single Ladies Night/Gay Bowling and the funky, riff-drizzled Creatures of the Night.
The Bodega feels like a home fixture for WCBL, and they take to the stage so confidently, you’d think their names were on the lease.
I first came across WCBL from a poster in The Lincolnshire Poacher. The gig had passed therefore I ‘tidied’ the poster into my bag, and promised myself that I would find out more about the mysterious band. I was hooked before I’d even heard a chord – a rare phenomenon, which I last experienced with the superbly named ‘Sex Toy Vending Machine’.
The style of both speaking and singing is certainly ‘a la mode’ – showcasing the frontperson’s innate ability to convey who they are with both melody and lyric. Eyes closed, one hand behind his back and the other placed lovingly on the mic clip, he is effortlessly cool.
The band have their roots in surf-rock guitars post-punk beats, with vocals and delivery-style reminiscent of Nottingham’s own ‘Do Nothing’. The style of both speaking and singing is certainly ‘a la mode’ – showcasing the frontperson’s innate ability to convey who they are with both melody and lyric. Eyes closed, one hand behind his back and the other placed lovingly on the mic clip, he is effortlessly cool.
I love that most of the band members have mics. Or, access to mics, with some opting for a Doherty/Barat-esque mic share. It makes the performance seem more equitable.
Their second single In the Hive has become the soundtrack to my 2024, particularly to my morning routine at home. The snarling delivery of “I put honey in my tea… I put honey on my toast” is a frequent refrain in our household, particularly at breakfast. For just a moment, I feel like a an indie Ferris Bueller, but in Sherwood.
This is how a band should sound. Thick bass guitar and uncomplicated drum fills command the rhythm. Scratchy Stratocaster, hollow-bodied Gretsch and a delicious looking Jagmaster complete the holy trinity of the guitars.
Rights For Flies, Trupa Trupa and Wizards Can't Be Lawyers performed at The Bodega on 11th December 2024.
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