On The Scene: Temple 16-05-2012

Two-for-one deal!! After checking out XP earlier last Wednesday night, I hitched a carriage over to the nearby Temple to see what was cooking – and luck have you, WHAI, the quasi-experimental groovy post-rockers from Ningxia, were just getting started as I walked toward Gulou joint. Heck, just walking up the stairs I immediately felt ten times more badass, like someone switched on Bruce Willis mode for me.

In a nutshell, that is essentially what WHAI is all about – it’s the soundtrack to your most badass fantastical daydreams. Black suit, black sunglasses, cigarette dangling from your mouth lit by a hundred dollar bill (wait that’s Chow Yun Fat). Cooler than cool. All the ingredients are there – cold as ice bass, heavy drums courtesy of the one and only Liu Miao, electronic fidgeting on a Yamaha, slick guitar and sparse vocals, which hang in the air like smoke. It all comes together so fludily. “Happy & Trite” may be one of my new favorite tracks –

Everything is just so calculated with these guys – it’s mesmerizing to watch. The timing on these guys is spot on – love how they will constantly pull back for a long moment before coming down again on their instruments even harder. WHAI are the real deal people…let the badassness rain upon you.

Can’t wait to see these guys play again! Pick up their demo too when you get the chance – it’ll great for those treks to work. And again, kudos to Temple for their awesome Wednesday nights of music – a small miracle in my book.