Passed THE BIG PINK advertisements stuck on lampposts (obviously the HYPE isn't quite over yet); passed the bleating line of woolly punters queuing for THE NME SHOCKWAVES TOUR gig (in Academy 1). Passed the touts, the tossers and the tearaways and into the gathering of the wise and virtuous outside Academy 3. God it was bitter in Brum; the sort of night a man could easily loose his bearings, no matter though we had "on street" entertainment as provided by the numpties in the other queue. OK so the majority of the sheep were blameless unknowing little lambs bedecked in their predictable indie uniforms, but amongst the innocent woolly ones there were those who could only be described as MUTTON, "ah there's no fool like an old fool Declan":
"Sheep to the slaughter Oh I thought this must be love, All your sons and daughters In a strangle hold with a kid glove" {EC "Big Sister's Clothes"}
Bye Bye sheepies off to see the "The Maccabees", snigger; "Bombay Bicycle Club", chortle and The Big Pink, no please stop it's not funny - Yes "The Big Pink" it's like Sigue Sigue Sputnik had never happened We were able though to slip into the Academy 3 unimpeded by any ovine encumbrances and after a wet and a whet we settled ourselves in for what we were about to receive. [Now I must apologise here cos between 7.30pm and 8.30pm I have no idea what happened. I guess I must have slipped on a plastic pint glass, bumped me noggin and passed out cos the whole things a blank. But while I was out cold I had the strangest dream; "last might I dreamt about Ali Baba" no, not that's one. I had a dream about being tied to a bar stool in a Kidderminster pub while a horrid ROCK band played relentlessly and unceasingly on and fucking on, I wanted to shout out "for fuck sake someone stop this banality engulfing and defiling my soul" but no sound came and the aural torment continued]. Thankfully I was all reet and back to my old self by the time Shropshire's finest the Kaya's took to the stage, the guy next to me who turned out to be my friend and associate John Bigot told me that whilst I was in my catatonic state I'd missed the first band…….nah? really, what were they like then? Err.
OK so it's very early days for The Kayas but at least they're starting out with all the right directions, and hey there's plenty to like about these Shropshire lads already. They've got a great name for a start - any band named after a Bob Marley album has got to be sound as a pound (They are named after Bob Marley's album aren't they?) They've got youth, a deal of unabashed passion and a catch phrase - AV IT!
After another whet and another wet it was time for The Wheel, kicking off with "She's a Weapon" and its B side the bombastic punk skiffle "Big Issue". These were then followed by, well, everything else basically, and a handful of new songs to boot. The new stuff sounds solid & sound - it doesn't seem like Twisted Wheel are about to join The Courteeners on a musical journey to unknownville. And I for one say - thank fuck for that!
TW will do what they do and hey and if Jonny Brown can keep writing songs as good as "Bang of the Beat" why do they need to burn the past. "We Are Us" and "Oh What Have You Done" finished things off nicely; the fulcrum turned and The Wheel moved on. And that's just about it really, until the next time. Meanwhile next door at Academy 1 the dullards are still watching the Maccabees - forgive them father for they know not what they do.
The Kayas and Twisted Wheel are going to do it all again in Shrewsbury Servern Cellars 9th April
GET THERE!
http://www.myspace.com/heartofapunksoulofarasta
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