The two members of Smoosh outdo the current batch of Indie popdoms young guns (Arctic Monkeys, The Subway et al) by several years, their combined age equalling that of a fresh faced 24 year old. This is rather alarming. Should these girls not be in school? Many a comparison can be made between Smoosh and the pre-teen young bucks that went before them (sisters 11 and 13). On first sighting, the word MmmmBoppp might spring to mind. However, merely passing them off as the female equivalent of Hanson would be to do them something of a disservice. With merely a keyboard and drum kit in use, a comparison to Keane might be more appropriate. This is rather interesting, because if we are to go down this route, then we can conclude that the two girls, born in the dying days of the 20th Century, make a noise that is a hell of a lot more interesting than Keane, bland bland Keane, ever could. On the other hand they could just be the next Cleopatra (Comin atcha!).
Next up it’s The Grates. Are the Grates about to become your new favourite band? On the face of it, quite possibly. Hailing from Brisbane, Australia (or should that be Brissie!, admittedly somewhere I had once believed to have been made up by Neighbours scriptwriters as a handy plot device to deposit any cast members found ro be surplus to requirements), the threesome combine the verve and energy of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Strokes and Le Tigre, to create a concoction of something very close to shear punk power pop madness. Although it is all about lead singer Patience, from the moment she bounded onto the stage, tripped over her microphone lead, and then plunged head long into the first song. This girl is quite simply amazing, as she quite happily belches between songs, in very much a vauderville style humour, mind. However, it’s rare that you find a support band that can captivate a crowd and lead an audience quite as successfully as The Grates. Admittedly, I was of the belief that the drummer and the sound engineer were in fact Smoosh’s parents, as they immediately dashed on at the close of Smoosh’s set to help pack away their gear. New favourite band? Quite possibly. The Internet has been scoured, and the EP should be winging its way any day soon.
With The Go! Team, everything finally comes to fruition. The Go! Team are a band I’ve been attempting to champion to my friends since around August of last year, thanks to a free CD giveway from the NME containing the album version of current single Ladyflash, the only jewel amongst a sea of somewhat run of the mill indie-by-numbers dross. The Go! Team are just something else, fusing Northern Soul with Sonic Youth, 70s disco beats with the themes from shows such as Huckelberry Finn and Friends. And to top it all, they have two drummers! Not since Pavement at their height in the mid-90s has their been a band with two drummers (although I think any comparison between the two, has to stop right there). Stand and marvel, as MC Ninja raps and freestyles through the likes of Feelgood by Numbers and Get It Together (surely worth a commercial release with Ninja’s vocals, anyone?), as she leads the audience in singing the chorus to Huddle Formation. The set is complete with an extended version of Ladyflash, with Ninja performing the various dances of the world (breakdancing for America, and a rather hilarious Riverdance for Ireland, culminating with Britain and a dance my friend Robin attributed to someone having a ‘spaz-attack’). And still it makes my heart weep that they were overlooked for the Mercury Music Prize in favour of Antony and the Johnsons. I mean, p-lease!
Posted by levers
at 8:05 AM GMT
