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| LIVE REVIEWS |
| MEAN FIDDLER - UNSIGNED SHOWCASE ASTORIA, LONDON 5 March 2001 They are plain and simply the highlight of this or any other unsigned buggering night. They shouldn�t even be here. Opener �Not Bad But Good� sounds like Gomez with a sandcrab down their knickers (i.e. awake); �Sausage Fossil� is liquid melancholy all over, spilling over with a childlike melody that feels like Sesame Street puppets in tears. Tragic, fluffy, with a smile etched helplessly on its features. Stunning. Stephen Brolan - Freelance Music Journalist MEAN FIDDLER - UNSIGNED SHOWCASE (As above) LIVE showcases of new talent are always an interesting prospect, frought with expectations - are you about to witness a rare talent, bound for bigger and greater things, or will you find yourself bored to tears by bands who should be put out of their misery for the good of all mankind? Only by attending can you be sure of either. Inevitably though, unsigned nights fall short of both possibilities, as bands are rushed through their paces at breakneck speed and allowed only to offer a glimpse of their full potential. Which is a great shame when bands such as Lunar Tool are on the bill. Hailing from South Wales, these six have clearly spent their informative years chilling out and getting into the groove (and, I'm hazarding a guess from their sound, smoking a fair amount of cigarettes of the herbal variety), and from the three songs they play tonight, it's clearly paid off. Although lead singer Simon Babb was wearing Badly Drawn Boy's hat, the band's sound is much more reminiscent of Nightmares on Wax and DJ Shadow (in fact with a bit of polish they could probably fit quite nicely into one of Mowax's legendary compilations ) so they're in good company. Kicking off their set with a groovy little number "Not Bad But Good", showcasing the scratching talents of Simon Lewis, Lunar Tool looked relaxed and together on stage. "Sausage Fossil" followed, introduced as "a smoking tune" and more suited to a chill out room than the vacuous Mean Fiddler, while their third offering, "Moonbox 31", raised the tempo and was equally enjoyable. A taster of what will, hopefully, be good things to come. Jessica Winterstein - Music Journalist - Unbarred Magazine DUBLIN CASTLE, CAMDEN Supporting: Rolan Bolan 5 Feb 2001 So, let�s have a look at this menu, then. Tonight�s starter: �Lunar Pool � Dancey pop from S. Wales�hotly-tipped.� Hold up. Didn�t I have that last week? And the week before and so on? Waiter! Does that come with Super Furry salad and lo-fat, lo-fi Gorky cheese? No? I�ll be having somma that then, and some of your finest vintage fizzy lager in a plastic glass, please. Tonight at chez Castle, the menu proves decidedly imprecise. You see, what we�re given clearly has a pop element, but pop it ain�t, has a dancey groove to challenge the hip-joints, but should under no circumstances be danced to. Oh, and they�re called Lunar Tool, and Waiter, my fucking head�s spinning here. It most definitely don�t do what it says on the tin. But they are Welsh, and if hotly-tipped is to draw attentions from XL Recordings, Beggar�s Banquet and (spell-checking) promoters Mean Fiddler, then I guess they�re that too. But how else to describe what�s going on here? Check the Starsky & Hutch funk doodlings of �Not Bad But Good�, their singer sounding like Ian Brown with more than just a note to the milkman. Erm, ordering two pints of Jamiroquai. The porntastic �Bubble Puppy�, sauntering forth with tash �n� tadger sleaze, starring Beck in Tom Jones�s boxers getting down and dirty and cutting it back with a riff that makes balloon animals out of Led Zepplin. The brilliantly titled �Fluffy Toys and Broken Biscuits�, with its Kermit the Frog intro puts Gomez in a kitchen and stirs the shit enough to induce a mellow fight, with pans and cutlery making the most glorious racket. �And now, ladies and gentlemen, one of the most interesting and unusual acts you�ll ever see�� Kermit croaks from the decks. To say the least. And when it�s over, as I�m throwing up metaphorical psychedelic funk puke in the gutter, the colours look beautiful, and it�s something I could go back and scoff up all over again. Highly recommended. STEPHEN BROLAN - Freelance Music Journalist Return to Homepage |
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