Team Waterpolo - The Stoke Sugarmill
I give it one or two songs until Team Waterpolo make you smile, tops. Keyboard and general DJ extraordinaire Ruggero Lorenzini will then catch your attention as he sings the backing vocals and look like he’s never had so much fun.
Opening (and ending), after they’ve entered the stage to a chorus of robot noises and sirens, with something that sounds nothing more than an uncharacteristic heavy jam, you’ll wonder if you’ve entered the wrong gig. Then you’ll see lead singer Fred Davis’ guitar and you’ll notice a glow-in-the-dark smiley face, maybe, you’ll think, this is the right gig. You’ll hear some more backing vocals that sound like Penny, now departed from The Automatic, injected with a ludicrous amount of fun over a stupidly catchy pop song, and a smile will uncontrollably beam across your face.
Unlike most bands, Team Waterpolo don’t seem to take themselves too seriously – “Route 44 is about a route, number 44” says Davis introducing the song - but they can write a seriously good pop song. You’ll come out of the gig singing “do you wanna, do, do you wanna know” no matter what.
The optimistic, or maybe just generally fun-loving, Team Waterpolo seem to put a positive spin on just about anything; the chorus of ‘So Called Summer’, about a summer that never comes sung over a “la la, lalala WOO” instantly makes you sway and move your feet. The insanely infectious ‘Square One’ with its “woo hoo”s and question answer backing vocals…actually, you know what, go see Team Waterpolo for the backing vocals and you’ll come out having also heard some good-old cheery pop with an extra added dose of fun.
Review by Jack Phillips
Photos by Sarah O’Connor
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