Queuing up the stairs, we’re greeted with the sounds of Crybaby – a dapper foursome, complete with a pretty girl drummer and matching monochrome outfits. Danny Coughlan’s lead vocals impress immediately, with hints of Echo & the Bunnymen’s Ian McCulloch and a crooning Richard Hawley. ‘We’re supposed to be in Love’ is an instant hit, complete with a catchy chorus and sultry bass. The band then take it down a notch for two or three songs, hushing the audience to silence and proving their worth as a band to watch out for in 2012.

Scarlet Rascal & The Trainwreck take to the stage just after ten to a room compiled of avid followers and an inquisitive few. Singer Luke Brooks furiously swings to the front, gasping into the microphone as the rest of the band start the first song. If they wanted to grab the audiences’ attention, they’ve done just that. The set is full of a continuous raucous, with Luke sparking off mannerisms worthy of Prince. Richard Clarke’s extra echoed guitar adds a hint of Joy Division whilst James Stockhausen provides steady bass lines throughout. The highlight of the set has to be ‘The Haunting’ to which Luke’s screeching hits a high as he falls to the floor for a full throttle at his guitar.

Scarlet Rascal & The Trainwreck have definitely got something good going on; it’s simply a case of nourishing their already impressive songs and building a sound exclusive to them. With a confident frontman and a refreshing take on a vintage genre, I expect nothing but a bright future for them.

Words: Sammy Maine
Photo: Laura Williams

How important was BBC Introducing to you?
The BBC have been very nurturing to us over the past year and it’s exciting to have someone like them championing and exposing your music to so many other people.

Your early releases were on cassette – what sparked that decision?
I find it so fascinating, that due to their lack of durability, there is a whole layer of production that is self-implemented every time the listener plays the cassette. I remember going into my parents’ attic and finding an old Vangelis cassette and when I played it it was so worn out – it sounded incredible, you could hear the last twenty years warbling and manipulating itself from within the cassette and into your ears. That’s what I love, the notion that in no fixed period of time, a listener can put on a cassette tape and get a whole new musical experience from it. There is also a conscious neglect for digital music in physical format. We all know that CDs are made up of high quality, and now publicly obtainable, WAV files – the magic is lost there.

Fixers is an intriguing name, tell us about it?
Jeez – it really means nothing, I’m not even a massive fan of our name! I try to forget about it, I guess I hear it so much that it becomes second nature but whenever its addressed I start to cringe a bit. Given the chance I’d change our name to Heloisa Vinhas. That is the name of the hit and run victim and aspiring Brazilian actress that Tom Cruise stopped by the roadside to help out. He actually took her to the UCLA medical center and paid for all her medical bills too.

You name Brian Wilson as one of your influences, what do you think about his recent live appearances?
I’ve seen him eight times now since 2009 and I have loved every single show. To be honest, after the first few times I found myself getting excited about different things rather than the music itself. Every time I have seen him recently I have wanted each song to end as soon as I have found out which song it is so I can see what he is playing next, his setlists fascinate me. I will go and see an entire show just on the off chance that he might play a song he hadn’t the previous time, some times it would be in vain and every now and then he would deliver the goods and pull out something a little obscure. The problem for me is that he dwells upon the earlier stuff too much, I love that stuff to bits but within a live capacity I really long to see some more of the post-Pet Sounds material like SMiLE, Love You, Holland and Carl & The Passions. I understand that his involvement waned somewhat after SMiLE but he often says that Love You is his favourite album (as do I) and to hear some of it live would just blow my mind. As for Holland, I’ve read him talking so enthusiastically about the amazing Funky Pretty at the end of the album – to hear him play that live would be incredible. The most exciting thing about a Brian Wilson show nowadays is his exchange with the crowd, it’s worth going to wait in anticipation between songs to see if he will feel confident enough to allow you into his mind for a few minutes with the odd impromptu retort. I’m always glued, wide-eyed – its something else. Nothing is more antagonising than people belittling Brian Wilson within an intelligent capacity because of his running mental health issues. I spoke to a girl at a festival once who described him as a lovely old grandfather figure of whom she just wanted to give a big hug to. It’s a lovely sentiment but come on, this guy would blow all of our fucking minds with his musical knowledge!

And Korn, is that right? How do you feel about their reunion?
That was kind of a joke, albeit a rather unfunny one. Did they reunite? Shit, I didn’t even know they had split up.

Your influences seem quite broad, what’s the most obscure influence of yours?
I don’t know. I have been listening to project called Zero Kama recently. It was an eighties cassette release and all the sounds/instruments are played on human bones.

Finally, if you could fix one thing in the world, what would it be?
One thing? I’d think it wise to consult someone on a slightly higher plateau of thinking than me before depleting my “one fix”. If I didn’t, I would just end up blowing it on something totally impulsive and banal like rectifying the Tower of Pisa so it no longer leaned.

Fixers support Kaiser Chiefs on their Bristol Colston Hall gig on February 22 and return to the region in May for their own headline tour – which stops off at Exeter Cavern on the 12th, Cardiff’s Buffalo Bar on the 14th and Bristol Thekla on the 15th. More information at www.fixerstheband.com

Long Day Fear kind of had a steady but fun-filled rock sound, that was permeated by a hit ‘em hard, steady drummer. I guess I could loosely describe it as classic rock sound, with that whole feel of riffarama – duel guitars generating quite a big noise. Next up was Sancturam, who I saw support My Ruin at the Thekla back in February last year. They fared better this time around as there were definitely more people here tonight. It was almost as if their singer had every metal growl engraved on his larynx. The guitarist was competently rolling out riffs like there was no tomorrow with the drums falling into every predictable stab possible.

Next up was Godsized a band that actually look like they belong in southern states of the US, rather than south east London. Their look is one that could be described as muscular, with both the guitarist and bassist bulging with muscles. They had all the hallmarks of the sort of band you can imagine of being on Relapse or Lords of The Southern Priests record labels. I could quite clearly hear elements of Clutch, Monster Magnet, Black Stone Cherry and The Black Label society. It was a sound that they had cultivated really well and the singer’s American accent sounded really authentic. It was all laced together with duel guitars and boogieing metal feel.

So since the last time I saw My Ruin, wee they got dropped by yet another record label, self releasing their latest album A Southern Revelation. From the off it is clear that they are still full of intent. Entering the stage to a dark classical intro track, with Mick Murphy looking like a younger version of Lemmy, bristling with a grin on his face before ripping into Silverlake 65:71. – where Tairrie came in with with her teeth gnashing and signature roar.

Tairrie B’s stage presence is magnetic; I mean the years have definitely not diluted her in both spirit and determination. She prowls the front of the stage resplendently, holding onto the front row, screaming out lyrics with such passionate aplomb that I can personally feel the force coming from her mouth – despite not really being able to hear what she is singing. Every aspect of their performance is drilled rock tight, the rhythm section absolutely pounding as they storm through Long Dark Night hot in The House and Blasphemous Girl. Each guitar solo sees Tairrie’s husband, Mick Murphy, pulling every single classic rock gurn in the school book. The beats blasted with heavy intensity and down tuned bass I could feel rattling the brick walls keeping the adrenaline pumping and fists pumping the air. Tairrie’s voice is is riffled out with sheer break neck intensity which is gradually cranked up and up through out the set.

She dedicated Middle Finger to My Ruin’s last record label, for screwing around with their last album, and it is fair to say that they served it up with full on intention as a fuck you, with Tairrie B screaming out this is what I’ll give you, which is quite frankly a terrifying prospect if you ever cross her. There are very few women in the world of rock or metal like miss Tairrie B Murphy. Tonight’s display shows that they don’t give a damn about being a fashionable or cool, but are freely digging in their heels, sticking staunchly to their guns. Stick it to Me, with the aid of their tour merch man on vocals, sounds as feral as it did 12 years ago.

The final pairing of Burn The Which and Beauty Fiend is served with huge amounts of whoopass and passionate vim, that rips from Tairrie B’s scorched vocals, backed by down tempo beats and long winding guitars that lace many classic metal moments, before giving way to a frenetic finish. It leaves the audience wanting more, with their eyes blazing, and with one question in my mind which is why aren’t there more women in rock?

Words: Jeffrey Johns
Photo: Helen Brown

Nevertheless, DJ’s are welcoming in the audience with mixes of classic RnB tunes. Support act A.M.X. is given an introduction worthy of a much more established artist – full of swagger and confidence, the singer wastes no time in hyping the crowd up. A.M.X. is then followed by a dance quartet called ‘The Floor Technicians,’ who slide onstage in dapper suits and impress with their contemporary tap skills.

After what seems like an eternity a video blasts on the screens, showcasing the Boyz II Men career with a clever time line and snippets of their best loved tunes. The trio then stroll on stage to screams the One Direction lads would be jealous of. Clad out in dapper waist coats, shiny shoes and even shinier watches, the group belt out their first number. Shawn Stockman then introduces himself and the other members, stating that they will give 100% to deliver a great show. Immediately it becomes clear that this American man-band aren’t going to do anything by halves and the gig continues to be very much a show of sorts.

Of course, ‘I’ll Make Love to You’ is a highlight – causing the audience to erupt into shrieks of delight and an ear piercing sing-a-long. The trio even give out roses to the audience during their serenade, which, yes was very cheesy but all part of the show. Newest member Wanya Morris is the most impressive of the bunch, hitting every note with the upmost precision and dancing like it’s 1991 without ever becoming out of breath.

‘End of the Road’ is another classic, as the whole venue sways from side to side, singing their hearts out. The group also play some new material from latest album ‘Twenty’ with 2 minute bursts of each song (Shawn: We don’t wanna lose y’all.) The group then finish off with ‘Motown Philly,’ with Shawn, Wanya and Nathan dancing just like they did back in the day. It’s clear to see that with over twenty years’ experience, Boyz II Men really know how to put on a show. Flawless vocals, impeccable showmanship and a sense of humour proved that they really did give 100% tonight. Boy bands of today – shame on you!

Words and photo: Sammy Maine

Rosa and Katy’s vocals are as smooth and impressive as ever, with harmonic elegance flowing through every song. ‘Parking Meter Blues’ is a particular highlight, with its progressive crescendo, making its impact thanks to drummer Olly’s efforts. ‘Funeral Beat’ is a stomper of a track, with intricate instrumentation and a drum beat so powerful, it causes Olly to lose a drum stick half way through. Peggy Sue finish with ‘Cut My Teeth,’ the opening track to their latest album. A dark and dreary start, the song erupts into a raucous of fuzzy guitar and shoutier-than-your-average vocals. Shuffling off stage, Peggy Sue prove a worthy support for the evening.

By the time Wild Flag strut on stage, the room is packed full of an eclectic mix of men and women, young and old. Even though all four members have previously played in various bands including Sleater-Kinney, it’s safe to say that Wild Flag have a following of their very own (if the ear-popping whoops are anything to go by.) Playing material from their self-titled debut, the girls are quick to burst into action. Carrie Brownstein and Mary B. Timony are the ultimate front women, with their combination of sheer talent and riot grrrl attitude. Highlights of the set include ‘Boom,’ for which keyboardist Rebecca Cole gets to strut her stuff. ‘Future Crimes’ shows off Carrie’s screeching vocals and ‘Glass Tambourine’ gets all the girls involved, showing off their harmonic abilities without losing any of their edge. Mary Timony is quick to kneel to the floor for a play around with her array of pedals and drummer Janet Weiss really goes for gold.

Finishing off with a cover of Bobby Freeman’s ‘Do You Wanna Dance?’ the crowd erupt into frenzy of shuffling feet and waving arms. The venue feels like a private party and band couldn’t be enjoying themselves more. Despite their confessed jet-lag, tonight’s happenings prove there’s nothing that’ll get in Wild Flag’s way when it comes to putting on a great show.

Words: Sammy Maine
Photo and video: Yatin Amin

Support tonight comes from solo act Man Made. 19-year-old Nile Marr dons a gold sequin blazer, complete with floppy hair and skinny black jeans. Offering up some really quite good songs such as ‘Slow Dance,’ ‘Do Your Worst,’ and the not so chirpy ‘Happiness’. Marr’s song-writing talents shine through, with the help of cleverly placed looping and a Fender Mustang. His modesty is apparent as he constantly reassures the crowd he’ll be leaving the stage soon enough. He needn’t worry however, as he keeps the audience’s attention intact throughout the entirety of his performance.

After some technical hitches, Howler clamber through the tightly-packed crowd, whisky to hand and hoods up. Launching into ‘America,’ the sound guy notches up the levels to 11, as the drums and bass viciously vibrate the entire room. Singer Jordan Gatesmith oozes arrogance from the get go, making small talk with the audience, complete with high-school humour and a Liam Gallagher swagger. The band then embarks on two more tracks from their Rough Trade debut ‘America Give Up.’ ‘For All Concern’ and ‘Beach Sluts’ showcase the band’s raw energy, with their battered punk rock influences and Gatesmith’s growling vocals.

Howler then steam ahead with the rest of the album’s track listing, only stopping to suggest a Bristol orgy and giggling about how wasted they all are. ‘Wailing (making out)’ is a particular highlight, as each member jolts to its addictive tones reminiscent of early Strokes material. The band then switch it up, with Max Petrek moving from keyboard to bass, France Camp from bass to guitar and Gatesmith from guitar to just vocals.

They finish off with single ‘Back of Your Neck,’ encouraging the younger audience members to flail their arms excitedly and bash their heads around a bit. Once it’s over, the worst encore attempt proceeds and the band complete the show with ‘Black Lagoon.’ Whether the guys simply wanted to get off stage (thanks to their jet lag) they gave it their all in this one, bashing their instruments to oblivion and finishing off with a suspiciously sarcastic thank-you.

All-in-all, Howler have some great tunes, however, their immature antics and unjustified arrogance put a downer on the whole performance – which is a real shame.

Words: Sammy Maine
Photo: Laura Palmer

The Horrors arrive onstage with the unique kind of confidence that comes with having your third album lauded worldwide, and instantly seal the deal as they lunge into opener “Changing The Rain”. This being a rescheduled date – it was originally due to be played in October but was postponed due to Faris’ laryngitis – the band have had a further three months to hone the songs from “Skying”, and it’s evidently worth it. The restrained joy of the opener is almost therapeutic, as its multiple layers, translated seamlessly from album to performance, wash over the fervent crowd, who bathe in its bliss and hang on to their leader’s every word.

From there onwards, Faris’ following remain wild-eyed. The hazy euphoria of the songs from “Skying” is juxtaposed throughout with the almost Gothic darkness of those from “Primary Colours” to astounding effect, as “Mirror’s Image”, “Scarlet Fields” and “Who Can Say” continue to enthrall among the newer material. Indeed, there is an element of the Byronic hero in Badwan, as he displays his particularly sardonic wit – introducing “Sea Within A Sea” as “a song about that group of people who are actually moving over there”. He inspires fascination whilst remaining coldly detached as he leers, snarls, and fumbles with the microphone lead as the band nail their neo-psychedelic second single “I Can See Through You”, its pulsating keyboard riff swelling magnificently to a hypnotic climax.

The band play with wryly self-assured smiles, bassist Rhys Webb sashaying in his floral shirt and Joshua Hayward intent on extracting the weirdest and most wonderful sounds possible from his guitar, and although sometimes the discordant feedback can grate. “Dive In” is very nearly marred in this sense – the songs from “Skying” are the kind that you can immerse yourself in and escape with. The recurring motifs on the album of oceans and water make perfect sense live, creating an overwhelming sense of tranquility, and “Endless Blue”, a majestic, jaw-dropping beauty, encapsulates this completely in its dreamlike introduction.

But beyond the woozy, melodic psychedelia and ferocious garage rock is the secret behind the uniquely loyal allegiance that this band’s fans have towards them: a shared sense of alienation. At times tonight the songs are almost curative in their serene, lulling splendour, as Faris croons about his sense of disconnection (“everyone/seems so far away”) and offers guidance to his following (“forget/your regrets/ don’t lose your purpose, this is your hour”). Set-closer and first single “Still Life” is enchanting in its grand luxury, all sleepy synths and keyboard lines, and revolves around Badwan’s key mantra: “the moment that you want is coming if you give it time”. And each face he sings that to completely believes him, eyes glazed and jaws gaping.

The encore then sees them finish with “Moving Further Away”, a mind-bending, eight-minute shoegaze monster, whose relentless melody embeds itself into every single spectator’s brain and which escalates into a raucous cacophony of microphone feedback and distorted soloing from Hayward – an ambitious crescendo which could have been disastrous but which is instead a mesmerising, unstoppable triumph. On the final cymbal clash of this nightmarish, glorious racket – which does, at times, threaten to be just a little OTT – the band simply nod, offer a brisk “thank you” and slink enigmatically offstage.

Words: Conor McGillan
Photo and video: Yatin Amin

The Eastbourne quartet largely thought of as a one hit wonder Toploader showcase much of their latest offering Only Human, released the summer of 2011, with Underdogs Music, surprisingly only their third release since forming in 1997. Hardly prolific. Though out to prove they do not belong in the bargain bin at your local service station Toploader play a well accomplished set brimming wit professionalism and clearly a band comfortable within their own skin.

The songs are catchy free flowing and full of all good feeling and vibes. newer songs like Cloud 9 or Numb blend seamlessly with largely forgotten chart single Achilles Heel .The foursome clearly loving every minute of this before escaping for the usual and inevitable encore stood in the corner of The Fleece like a group of naughty school boys who rather embarrassingly can’t seem to find the door to disappear and give the encore it’s fully desired effect.

The predictable encore is of course Toploader’s rendition of ‘Dancing in the Moonlight’. That ignites the crowd and gets everybody dancing, however I doubt with the age range of half the venue tonight there is any awareness that this hit was originally released in 1973 by King Harvest. And is more likely to conjure images more often seen sandwiched between episodes of Coronation Street, a Sainsbury’s advert, inextricably linked with flabber tongued Jamie Oliver. Joseph, lead singer, keys and occasional guitar, rates the audiences rendition a 9 or even a 10, mentioning that he’s seen some 4′s and 5′s in his time.

With the boys evoking a carefree spirit, cheery in nature it could be said unfortunately matched with somewhat generic sound, however with their enthusiasm they excel with their performance. They prove to anyone watching they get a real kick out of playing live. One hit wonder? Maybe. Poor band? Never.

Words and photo: Laura Palmer

Showcasing a brand of synth-pop not dissimilar to this evening’s headliners, clearly handpicked to provide ample support that ready’s the crowd for the main event. The duo made up of lead man Remiddi formerly of Sunny Day Sets Fire and his drummer lead us through an eclectic bunch of songs that are so full and effective and highly impressive for just a duo. For the last song Remiddi plays solo displaying both his piano and guitar skills and leaves the stage to a rapturous applause.

After a short break a lone masked figure enters the stage replicating the symbolic front cover of their new Midnight City EP; M83 create atmosphere and anticipation before smashing through it with Intro the first song from their latest album. The strobes and lighting only adding to the immense power this small band generate more like a symphonic pop orchestra than a band. Pitch black one second only for the room to be immediately submerged in waves of color and light once more it seems this old church is really being treated to a show of stadium proportions this evening.

As the set goes on the group only go on to build from the epic intro setting themselves a high bar the band only seem to go on and raise it even higher with every on going moment that’s so satisfying and rare to see. The heavily stomping bassist/keys/guitar player stomping ever more vigorously as the bass builds to boiling point until it is shaking your very septum. The 80’s retro vibe brought into the modern era has been attempted by many but M83 are the only band I’ve seen that really make the approach seem fresh, new and most of all relevant. It’s little wonder their publishers are probably sat licking their lips you get the feeling we’re going to be hearing a lot of M83 in visual media for years to come yet.

Midnight City comes near the end but not right at the end, a bold move not to play it as a closer but this only shows the confidence they have in all their material. playing the storming riff with only one hand it shows the best melodies really are the simplest ones. As I left The Trinity I got the feeling I wasn’t the only one leaving with a ringing in my ears, scorched retinas and a sense of overwhelming satisfaction that we’d all seen something pretty special.

Words and photo: Laura Palmer

Video: Yatin Amin