Brainclaw: Albany, NY 10-22-05

Brainclaw Makes their Mark on Albany, NY

Review by: Julie Johnson

On a rainy Albany, NY evening, Morrisville, Pennsylvania’s upcoming Industrial, EBM artist Brainclaw were here to play for the Static Sky Records CD release party for the Electro Revolution VOL. 1. This marks the first time for Brainclaw to play in Albany, NY and we were very lucky to have them here. I hope this is not the first and last time they play Albany, NY. Only working with three members of Brainclaw they still put on a powerful performance and gave it their all and had a lot of fun. From the beginning, with their keyboards lit up with blacklights, fog billowing around the stage, a strobe- light flashing, to the laser shooting lights shooting out towards the crowd, you knew from the very moment of first sound of “Strike”, the newest single, that this was going to be a full electronic assault. Both, David and Tara Giuffre took turns with singing and playing keyboards. Sometimes, when David would be singing, you would find him also close to Tara and at times sharing the keyboards as well with her. Tara added more creepy sounding vocals, which brings out the more sci-fi side of the band. When I was watching Brainclaw perform, it was more like watching a band, because they are actually playing the synths. One of the best parts of the live performance was that there were live drums used. Let me tell you, the live drums made the music even better live. If you were lucky to be at this show and also a long time fan of their music you were given a chance to hear six new songs from their up-coming release, “Dead Monsters”. The band opened with the powerful track, “Strike” which talks about making your mark in life. What have you done in your life? “Strike” can also be found on the latest Interbreeding VII, in a remix form and is also the first track on their new upcoming album. They also performed “Fallen”, which is also a track on their new album and on the Electro/R/Evolution Vol. 1 from the Static Sky Records compilation, again which is featured in a remix format. They also debuted "Dead Monsters", “Feed the Machines” “The Trip Behind” all from their new album soon to be released. They also played songs from Insekt/Angel, including the title track. Just by listening to the new songs live you can tell the Brainclaw has gone in a different direction from Insekt/ Angel. Their songs are more aggressive in nature and have even more of an EBM influence. Lastly, the band offered two stunning covers of Peter Gabriel’s “Games Without Frontiers”, and “Stripped” by Depeche Mode. The cover of “Games Without Frontiers” was amazing and the music was incredible. The cover has a club-like feel and is available on their website for download, the same for “Stripped”. After this performance, I am even more excited to hear the new album most likely titled “Dead Monsters”. Brainclaw are a real class-act and down to earth musicians and it was a true honor to be at their show in Albany, NY. Stay tuned for our exclusive interview with the band just an hour before from their performance that night on Grave Concerns E-zine in the coming days along with an album review when it comes out. For more information on Brainclaw please visit: www.brainclaw.com