The Oohlas

Cinespace - September 26, 2006

Live Review by Amber Henson

The Oohlas will wake you up.  That’s something I can personally attest to.  After finding the stage in the back of Cinespace, I settled into a booth and fell asleep on my accommodating boyfriend’s shoulder.  After an opening band that I obviously have no recollection of, The Oohlas began to set up.  I started to watch, and before long, left my perch of sleep.  There was Olivia Stone, the lead singer and rhythm guitarist, in her silver sequined mini dress, her mismatched stockings, and her indie haircut.  She was helping the band to set out wine bottles.  I would later find that inside the wine bottles were Christmas lights, and when they were all lit up around the stage, it made for a colorful scene.  She also set out a couple of small R2-D2’s, which would later be taken off the stage until she threatened the robbers with death (“Put my R2s down or I will fucking kill you” were her exact words).

When they started, the room immediately lit up with energy.  Everyone in the band is so excited to be there, especially Stone, who couldn’t keep her huge smile off her face even when she was singing low-key grunge songs.  Her presence on stage is reminiscent of Elastica’s Justine Frischmann, kind of a butch, modern, feminine thing going on.  She sings earnestly and a little close to the mic, so on occasion it’s difficult to understand, but that’s not really what it’s all about anyway.

This was their record release party for Best Stop Pop, so obviously they were more electrified than usual, and so was an apparently loyal fan base of friends that rocked out up front.  They knew the songs.  The rest of us were outsiders, but we were sucked in.  There was definitely some headbanging happening, on and off stage.  The Oohlas played nine songs from their new album.  They are thrilling to watch and a whole lot of fun, so see them while they’re small and innocent.