I need to stop going to The Hobgoblin, this is now the third
classic Saturday night in a straight row. It can’t go on, I’m riding my luck.
Tonight?
I’ve found myself in the land of Skinny Jeans and Skinny Kids - this is indieworld.
It was a night of pure ‘Power Pop’ – of course they aren’t
going to like me saying that because all three bands would describe themselves
as ‘Power punk’.
You’ll have to forgive
this old punk for being a pain. Think ‘The Skids’, ‘The Motors’; think ‘New
Wave’ in general but with some gravel thrown in.
Truth about Vegas
That’s Joe Sharman, Jack Gee, Sean Bowen and Jacob Howell and
they are very local – Walton. They describe themselves as:
“a young, new and exciting band on the London
music scene. Fusing pop punk with their distinctively energetic, yet melodic,
guitar driven sound they captivate any audience they play to”.
And that’s about right – it was thoughtful, clever stuff (all
their own) played well with bursts of really hard power.
At the time I was being the local drunk magnet – attracting
all the slurring, wobbling incoherents of Staines to came over and talk into
me. It’s a gift I have.
Also there was Vegas’s biggest ever fan shouting in my ear about
how good they were and then demanding that they play ‘Rock and Roll’.
They did and in fact, at the end of a hectic 7 day national tour, they
were back on their home ground and to be fair, they were good.
Loose Lips
Loose Lips are from Brighton and this is how they describe
themselves;
“Brighton
has been churning out great bands throughout music history, it must be the sea
air, and now is no different. Welcome Loose Lips....
Consisting
of Jason Barker (Lead Vocals and Guitar), Ben Moore (Vocals and Bass) and Sam
Perkins (Vocals and Drums), Loose Lips are on the brink of breaking the music
mould and its easy to see why. With the cheek and confidence to make you sit up
and listen, then with the musical talent to back it all up Loose Lips are a
force to be reckoned with.
After
phenomenal response back from their debut EP release 'Cloud Your Thoughts' the
band are arguable one of the busiest groups out there. With countless supporting
shows to the likes of Futures and Don Broco also playing festivals throughout
the summer such as Redfest.
Loose Lips
are a refreshing change to the watered down cordial music that pollutes our
charts today.”
They put themselves in the “Punk Indie Rock” box.
Me?
I’d say less pop more gravel. Lots of power, plenty of
aggression. Lots of fun.
The Harriots
The Harriots are a four piece band from Feltham and according
to them they have a;
“a
sparkling energy that is missing from so many other bands around today. They
are here to prove that there is still a beating heart in Rock and Roll with a
set of songs, massive self-confidence and a youthful exuberance that no band
over the past few years can match. The band's influences take in the best from
British guitar music from The... Who through to The Jam and all the way up to
Oasis and Arctic Monkeys. The band blend these influences to come up with hugely
catchy sing-along tunes with what can be described as a very 'London' sound.”
I enjoyed them a lot – lots
of power, lots of energy – and then when their amplifier failed we had bit of a
sing-along to some classic covers.
Except that for me it was becoming quite an emotional night –
several people said hallo including someone who came up to say how I’d done
some ‘work’ for her Dad, which was very nice- I was in a little piece of Feltham
in Staines, that little grain of sand in the oyster.
Then, while the frantic attempts to save the amp were
failing, someone from the crowd joined the band
to sing Richard Ashcroft’s
(The Verve) ‘When the drugs don’t work anymore’, which was not necessarily an anthem
to drug excess but a poignant song about watching his dad, dying from cancer.
“Now the
drugs don't work
They just make you worse”
So, all in all that was a very special night for me down at
the Hob.
Neil Harris
