My late arrival meant I missed the first half of The Kiks set. For a Southampton band The Kiks had me fooled; I was convinced they'd just got off the train from Liverpool. The 60's influence and Mersey guitar jangle oozed out of them, accompanied by a cheeky chappy attitude. Now I like The Coral and I love The La's but, whilst The Kiks were obviously having lots of fun being in a band (and I can't fault them for that), they didn't offer me anything different than what I might find on a Cast b-side.
As the set continued it became apparent that they had a couple of good tunes tucked away, but they weren't good enough to sway me from my first impressions (and I'm sure they used "showaddywaddy" as a lyric at one point). So, not quite my bag of donuts (this from the man who hated The Coral when he first heard them but loves the new album) but seeing as I'd only paid a fiver to get in I can't really grumble.
Next up were Dead!Dead!Dead! who, I must admit, were the reason I'd travelled to Southampton on a chilly Friday night. Again another local outfit (well, it was a SouthScene showcase), D!D!D! have a shambolic polish about them that bigger acts I've seen could learn from.
They roared onto the stage, grabbed my attention, threw it around a bit, stopped for a couple of jokes at the drummer's expense (if the music career fails then a future in stand-up comedy beckons for the lead singer), then dropped the speed a notch before revving up for the end (OK, so I've been watching Top Gear).
The band themselves were very tight musically, with the two guitarists\vocalists knowing how to work the stage (something which can't be said of some of the bands I've paid more money to see), so chances are the signed CD I bought at the gig might be worth something on ebay some day.
Third up were Cayto who, strangely for a southern showcase, hail from northern climes (Glasgow to be precise). The lead singer, who bore an uncanny resemblance to Seth Green, built a piano wall to block himself off from one side of the audience and the bass player; with the rest of the band assembled loosely they started to play.
H'mm.
I have to admit that Cayto didn't connect with me. They made music that, to me, was far too clever for its trousers. Yes, they can play. Yes, they're talented. Yes, the lead singer was wearing a neckerchief. Yes, they make interesting music. But it's not music that you can dance to. Or sit still to. Or even do the ironing to. It's music that you have to go away and have a think over and work out whether someone is taking the piss or not.
Just when I heard a tune or a rhythm that I could hook into it was kicked down a flight of musical stairs on its way into the next movement. Maybe I wasn't in the right frame of mind for them; I have a bottle of Absinthe here so maybe I'll give them another try one rainy winter evening (I think a warm-up session listening to The Bad Plus might come in handy).
Mach Schau were the headlining act of the showcase. Unfortunately a combination of a need for beer and my inherent geekiness meant that I missed the start of their set; I was at the bar talking to the guys from Dead!Dead!Dead! about the Evil Office baseball cap the rhythm guitarist had been sporting earlier on. Yes, all very sad.
As I returned with a fresh Grolsch the lead singer of Mach Schau teetered on the edge of the stage, leering out to the crowd in a casually disinterested manner. Sounding not unlike Maximo Park in places, Mach Schau ooze attitude; as they powered through their set the lead singer padded around the stage as if he couldn't give a toss if we were there or not.
He soon had his wish, we had to leave. I'd have liked to have stayed and seen the rest of their set but we had to hotfoot it to the station to get the last train out of the big city. Life is hard when you live in the suburbs, I didn't even get a chance to buy their CD (there are freebie MP3s on their website though).
Both Mach Schau and Dead!Dead!Dead! have gigs in the pipeline, I'd recommend checking them out if you get the chance.