Song Spotlight: Nova Twin's Piranha (a night at Zebulon)

I was uncertain what I wanted to do on a recent Wednesday night. I was thinking that there was Nova Twins at Zebulon and then there were other live events going on around Los Angeles. I'll be honest, I was leaning towards heading off to another venue, but without a solid conviction either way. Sometimes there is an unexpected intervention that changes everything. On Monday night, the US Rocker Music editor forwarded me an email request by Nova Twin's PR team, asking if we wanted to cover their set. 

Nova Twins at Zebulon

Now would be a good point to admit that I'd never heard of Nova Twins. With that email, I decided I should take a listen to their music before making a decision on rather or not I wanted to cover their set for US Rocker Music. The PR email emphasized their song "Piranha." I decided I would start there. I was immediately blown away. The opening bass notes had a vibrating feel. It was aggressive. Then there were the rap-metal vocals. It reminded me of my current favorite Los Angeles band Bruvvy (you can read a recent write-up I did of that band here). A total change of plans was made for a Wednesday night. You can read my write-up on US Rocker Music here.

Nova Twins at Zebulon

The UK duo of vocalist / guitarist Amy Love and bassist Georgia South blew the roof off Zebulon from the very beginning with their opening two songs "Antagonist" and "Taxi." Then it was time for "Piranha." Love seemed to have some technical difficulties with both her mic and guitar. Interestingly, the band's music tech had been going up on stage constantly prior to the set, checking out all the equipment so it must have been a frustrating moment for everyone involved. 

Nova Twins at Zebulon

The song started off with South letting the beat of the bass dictate her body motions, slamming her body forward with the every beat before lifting her bass directly to the sky. Love acted as a punk choir director, lifting her arms high to clap to her bandmate's beats. About a minute into the song, Love gave up on her guitar. She removed it and handed it off to her music tech. Perhaps it took away from the song's sound, but it was just replaced by Love's charismatic performance. At one point, she raised her left arm and circled her fingers in a clockwise moment. The crowd knew what to do. A mosh pit erupted. The outer limits of the pit impacted those at the front of the stage -- and like puppets, their bodies were flung across the threshold of the stage. For me, I was just far enough away from the center of the stage to avoid the outer impacts of the pit. 

Nova Twins at Zebulon

Via various online sources, the band mentioned that the song is about the current "tensions" happening across the globe. As they're a UK based band, one has to assume they're talking about more than just what is occurring in the United States. 

Piranhas in the water.

You're on borrowed time.
Are you terrified?

Nova Twins at Zebulon

Nova Twins setlist: Antagonist, Taxi, Piranha, Cleopatra, Soprano, N.O.V.A, Choose Your Fighter, Sleep Paralysis, K.M.B, Drip, Monsters, Glory.