Haverhill Arts Centre

Friday, February 8

Review by Karen Steel

IT could have all gone horribly wrong at the very beginning of the second heat of Haverhill Rock Competition, with openers Selective Walk breaking a guitar almost immediately – but the show went on thanks to a generous loan from Eva's Dream.

I couldn't help worrying for that borrowed guitar, so aggressive was the playing by Selective Walk's singer/guitarist.

Despite their tender ages, the band had a good grip of lyric-writing, although I'm not sure they'd have to be taken back very far to find the lost 'youth and innocence' lamented in one song.

There were some serious time-keeping issues in their set, but they did make you want to watch them, filled with energy and youthful exuberance.

Harmonies seem strangely lacking in Haverhill rock competitions, traditionally, but Eva's Dream had them aplenty, along with some catchy tunes – one of which is still stuck in my head four days later.

Although undoubtedly serious musicians, they didn't give the impression of taking themselves too seriously, which was refreshing, and possibly helped by the female presence in the band (all-male bands have a horrible knack of taking themselves very seriously indeed).

Probably the most eagerly-awaited performance of the evening came from Haverhill favourites Indigo, who reformed after a spell apart.

The band's progress over the years has been steady, and they've clearly developed both as musicians and performers.

There were a number of songs I recognised from previous shows, but they seem to have fleshed them out a bit, and it's probably the right time for them to have gone through to the final.

Rounding off the evening was Falling Empire, which I think was probably the most album-friendly band of the heat, as well as one of the more musically accomplished.

Indigo will be competing for the title in the final on February 23.