It is a near impossible task to steal the show from the legendary Go Go's, but the Ettes came as close to doing that as anyone possibly could. The Ettes put on a flawless performance combining a rock and punk sound that kept the audience in a state of energy, as they opened for the Go Go's Tuesday night at the House of Blues on the Sunset Strip.
Given the opportunity to play the biggest show of their career, the Ettes did not waste anytime, as they were able to hook the audience with their sound from the opening song "Gimme".
The trio of Coco Hames, lead singer and guitarist, Poni Silver, drums, and Terra Cloyes, bass, come out on stage looking like three cute, young girls who may give you a few ballads mixed in with their rock songs, but that is not the case. You will find no ballads here and the Ettes easily pull off their edgier than most act.
Following "Gimme", with "Dead and Gone", "Eat the Night", also the name of the Ettes debut album, and "Get Out" all stayed with the same high tempo sound. These songs also gave one the feeling that they could all easily reach a wider audience with their rhythm that kept the audience dancing, while just adding fan after fan to their list with each and every song.
In the middle of the set the Ettes broke out with the Clash song "Should I Stay or Should I Go", which clearly reflected the punk sound that can be found throughout their music.
Dirty On The Inside gave that angry and chaotic punk sound that would have made the Clash proud. Although you can feel the intensity that Coco brings to the lyrics, her voice never loses that oh so appealing tone that gives the audience.
The second to last song of the night, "Beggars", brought the intensity down, just a little, but that was enough to hear the softer side of Coco's incredible voice, and clearly showed that she could sing any genre of song she wanted.
The Ettes went right back to their fast and furious sound to end the show with "No More Surprises", a song that allowed Poni to really dominate the song with her drum play and she finished the song and concert with a drum solo that left the crowd wanting more.
If you are just finding the Ettes, the great thing is that you won't find one band on their CD and a different version live, and there is a reason for that.
"We did everything first take, that first-take energy is very important to us," Coco said. "We might miss a note or a beat, or my voice will be off-key, but that's a sacrifice we are willing to make because we like that live straightforward sound."
To get more information on the Ettes and where to find their CD, you can visit their website at www.theettes.com
, and to get the true Ettes experience you can see them live at El Cid in Los Angeles on June 24
