Sounds Around Town with Dave Franklin (From This Is Wiltshire)

Sounds Around Town with Dave Franklin

3:35pm Thursday 26th January 2012 in Music

After a few weeks grumbling about the apparent lack of bands blazing trails into new horizons with their self penned outpourings…err, I mean bands playing their own songs... the Gods of Fate seem to have intervened and laid out a truly wonderful musical serving suggestion for us all.

So, for once, it’s straight on with the show.

Underlining my opening thoughts nicely is tonight’s show at The Victoria featuring some of the most original and home-grown young bands around at the moment. Headliners Nudy Bronque combine a frothy punk energy with direct, fun indie-pop songs, and alongside them are purveyors of exquisite quantum pop (that’s math-pop taken to its illogical conclusion…probably) Super Squarecloud.

Sitting somewhere between the two, Crash And The Bandicoots are a recent find for me but a band that I predict great things for this year. Opening the show is The Fixed.

The Beehive will be attempting the Tardis-like feat of trying to cram Zetan Spore’s festival experience into their small but perfectly formed space. Still, they have done it before and, by all accounts, the band’s dance-fuelled, psychedelic trancy antics always go down a storm. Glow sticks at the ready people.

Back at The Victoria (warning, this article will be a bit Vic-heavy and sadly no money has yet changed hands because of it!) on Friday, and another great line-up of original bands that are already making a mark.

Despite being listed on at least one national listing site that really ought to know better as a 14-piece Latin jazz ensemble, Young Blood are actually a four-piece indie band that have risen from the ashes of local favourites Napoleon In Rags. For their first hometown show they are aided and abetted by Brighton’s urban rock crossover Icarus Youth and the cinematic indie folk (folkestral anyone? okay, maybe not) of Anchor And The Wolf.

More quality sounds can be found out at Riffs Bar in the shape of local indie yobs The Racket. Subtlety, reserve and tranquillity are just three of the words that they don’t know the meaning of, but if the sound of Britpop being clubbed to death by The Libertines is your thing then you need to get to this gig.

Another outing for The Fixed and The John Does will get the night moving.

If, like me, one of your introductions to rock music was locking yourself away in your room wearing out a copy of Kiss Alive II on a cheap record player then you may want to head down to The Furnace for Dressed To Kill and relive the glory days of one of rock and roll’s most over-the-top bands.

Adding a bit of decorum to the week’s proceedings is the swing-driven boogie blues of The Teddy White Band, who play The Rolleston.

Continuing the triptych of original line-ups courtesy of The Victoria (nope, still no money!), Saturday sees False Gods swagger into view, a new alt-rock trio who mix up influences as rich as Muse, Nirvana, Biffy Clyro and The Manic Street Preachers. It’s safe to say that it gets my vote. Rounding out this line -up is the psychedelic math rock (if you can imagine such a thing) of Port Erin and the funked out rock drives of Bodyglass.

Back out to Riffs Bar and I have to say that I’m sure The Mangarrs are a great little cover band but why brilliant support act Will and The People aren’t getting offered headline gigs round here is beyond comprehension. Well, market forces and all that, I guess.

The punked up rockabilly of The Stray Cats can be heard at The Rolleston courtesy of The Runaway Boys and more nostalgia can be found on Saturday as the MECA plays host to the music of T-Rex and The Boomtown Rats.

If you do want to take a trip down memory lane then it is worth heading to Long Street Blues Club in Devizes for The Pretty Things, 60s rivals to The Stones and still fronted by founder members Dick Taylor and Phil May.

Final mention of the week finds us back at The Beehive for an afternoon session with Blake, a multi-instrumentalist who ploughs a furrow through 60s-inspired pop with a psyched out vibe and lo-fi honesty.

A great week for checking out new music and an absolute pleasure to write up.