By NICK SMITH
Foamy Ed's view of life, the universe and everything is fantastically simple: rark it up!
It's both a statement of intent and the name of a Foamy song that the all-female Auckland pop-punk quartet deliver on when hitting the stage.
So if punters at the Big Day Out are looking for some straight-out, fast and hard rock'n'roll, then look no further than the Foamies, one of the first bands to appear, hitting the Blue stage at 11 am.
You can almost guarantee that the first song they play, in the great rock'n'roll tradition, will start with "1, 2, 3, 4!" From there it will be foot-to-the-floor, 4/4 pop-punk that expresses the band's incredible lust for life.
The Foamies, Fleur Parker, Lani Purkis, Aimee Banks and Kat Miller, began as a Green Bay High School band in 1996. But it took another two years before the group started realising their talent.
They first played Big Day Out in 1999, the same year they recorded the EP Go Where You Know, released last year. The band is now concentrating on new material with a view to laying down tracks for an album later this year.
Foamy Ed has to be seen live. It's their natural environment and where their personalities really shine. On stage the quartet is hilarious, with their enthusiasm, energy and sheer enjoyment in their work plainly evident.
While various all-male bands working in a similar genre are overwrought and angry, the source of which is difficult to discern, this band brings a smile to the dials of hardened cynics. The Foamies possess more snap, crackle and pop than a packet of Rice Bubbles.
Parker and Purkis, vocals and bass respectively, say that performing gigs is a wondrous experience, talking of the simple joy of playing hard and fast, sweat-stained rock'n'roll. Certainly they give the audience a run for their money, with the irrepressible Purkis' gravity-defying leaps about the stage without missing a note on her bass, a must-see highlight.
Guitarist Banks says that she does not mind the early start, the band's profile not yet deserving of better placement - and giving her the chance to check out artists such as PJ Harvey and German schlockmeisters Rammstein.
* Foamy Ed, Big Day Out, Blue Stage, 11 am.
Foamy Ed - Give 'em enough soap
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.