Monkfish, live at the cartoon Wednesday 31st October

There was no mucking about for these guys � as soon as they were on stage without hardly any delay they were off on their first song of the evening � The attack of the Barking snails, Grabbing everyone's attention automatically.

The long introduction of percussion was perfect for letting the crowd get ready for the performance and created some great suspense for the new material that�s only been played live the once before. They then went into just percussion and bass � then into an unaccompanied guitar riff from Dave and Pete � soft vocals crept in as the drums and bass came back in as well and joined all together into the great opening song that is Barking snails (Pete's creation I do believe).

Every one was on top form and being the gig before their first headlining gig � you could tell they were obviously ready to hold the lime light to them selves. After a brief stop � it was into overtime and still the crowds were captivated by the bands enthusiasm. Straight into Uludag, For an opening band, Uludag really has everyone's attention. Its hard not to pay attention to the band in such conditions � Any talent scouts who missed this Halloween gig have missed out on more then they bargained for.

The bands Unique mystique (well can you tell me anyone else who sings about the religion of Wang or the way in which snails bark?) is complimented by their deftones type style in which each song has progressions from different tempo's to different volumes, making it exciting and interesting to hear and to watch.

Tunnel � After another brief stop, they are into my personal favourite other then Uludag � this song has been perfected in valuable practice sessions since their last gig, before which they had not much time to rehearse.

You could tell that they were all self-conscious so it dimmed Tunnel's spark somewhat. This time though, the band out did them selves as they went straight into Conrad Wang � another top tune. With the bass and percussion so in tune with each other you'd think they were digitally timed. This song featured Morgan on back up vocals � whose small part makes all the difference to the song.

During this break between songs the band stressed that they hadn't had a sound check before hand � and complained about the feedback from the guitars. I had to assure them that they must have been the only people who noticed it. The band weren�t the only ones I was watching � I watched the crowds too and we were standing on the other side of the monitors and heard everything perfectly. However despite all this the performance of the last song of the set was outstanding like the rest. I have not missed a single Monkfish gig yet � but I can say that this was the best they have performed so far BY FAR. Their confidence today shone through and made the song so alive, I believe this is one of the reasons why it was so successful. Even though it was a short set they had taken everyone attention from the start and right through to the last song � everyone was still focused and enjoying themselves. You cant expect a mosh pit from an opening band, the crowd has to warm up � but NO ONE wasn't listening, MOST were standing up, and ALL were enjoying.

Kate Cullinane.