venta

Yesterday's leisurely burger-eating was a thing of the past. I left Oxford at half five, got rather snaggled up in a jam on the A40, improvised a route around it that mostly worked, parked, trotted down to the station, tubed across London, grabbed a sandwich in Kings Cross, grabbed a pint at the Lexington's downstairs bar, and just squeaked in before the first band came onstage.

I watched Chorusgirl at Indietracks last year and enjoyed them; subsequent investigations revealed they hadn't released much, but apparently they now have an album out.

Chorusgirl describe themselves as "jangle 'n roll"; I don't think they're the jangliest ever but they're heading that way. Sort of Veronica Falls-lite, with occasional hooks that Billy J Kramer would have been proud of.
Driving drums and bass keep them firmly tied down to a solid rhythm.

I'm not sure they've quite got a coherent sound yet. In particular the singer's delivery veers about, now breathy, now snatched, now clear, as if she can't quite decide... Overall, though, I enjoyed them a lot and will be acquiring the album. I also suspect their drummer may be Quite Good (but I know even less about drums than I know about guitars).

Try it: No Moon

A couple of years ago Flowers seemed to be the big news of Indietracks. They're now one (Bernard Butler-produced) album to the good and have quite a following, but I can't get the hang of them.

They're a three piece, guitar/bass/drums, with the bassist standing almost completely still while she sings like Elizabeth Fraser. The guitarist churns out frenetic, patchy guitar... I don't know what the drummer looks like, due to the decision to light them in a manner that hopes you'll mistake them for The xx (i.e.minimally).

I'm just confused by Flowers, but feel I might be wrong. Their record label like them.

Tigercats are a band that just make me happy. They're infectiously poppy, wistful and ferocious by turns. Also they are the only band of the evening with a non-human on-stage, as their bass player is a mop (the mop plays fabulous bubbly basslines while bounding around the stage).

They're almost double-fronted, with many of the vocals shared between the guitarist (he doesn't really have much of a singing voice) and the keyboard player (she does). Their lyrics are upbeat and silly and a bit juvenile, and very London-centric.

And sometimes they sound a bit Vampire Weekend, and sometimes they remind me of the Barenaked Ladies, and the Internet wants to compare them to Los Campesinos!, but really they are themselves. And they make me want to dance. And laugh... One of my favourite moments of the first album is the audible smile in the main singer's voice as he finishes the final track "We're Tigercats, and we're banned at the Troxy!)

(I have no idea whether they are, or why.)

Try it: Full Moon Reggae Party (with cutesy animated cats) or Sleeping in the Backseat (be warned, surprisingly unpleasant imagery in the video)