Henry and the Bleeders, The Dillenquents, Desperate Cycle, Grown At Home, Fleeing From Finales.

Esquires Bedford Lev 2 4th August 2006.

Reviewed by Christine Miller / Pictures by Suzy Cook.

On Friday 4th August ‘One For The Underground’ had been expecting an appearance from the Leicester-based punk-rock five-piece Two Shot Blast, a group who have recently been enjoying increased radio play and press coverage (including a mention in the ‘Incoming!’ section of this month’s Metal Hammer Magazine) recently after the release of their debut E.P. ‘Life In Your Hands’ on Lockjaw Records in June this year. However, tonight it seems was not meant to be, as a broken down tour bus sadly laid rest to all hopes of the band making it to the venue. Yet tonight’s visiting artists more than managed to step into the breach and put on a brilliant show, while the sheer rock star quality of local bands Henry and the Bleeders and The Dillenquents more than compensated for the missing headliners… Bexhill’s answer to Fall Out Boy, FLEEING FROM FINALES got the night of to a shining start with their shimmering melodies and uplifting harmonies. The lead singer’s polite introduction and the band’s extremely tight start is kept up throughout their set and as drums hiss and keyboards twinkle it’s difficult not to find yourself being won over by Fleeing From Finales emotive, passion-driven pop-rock and impressed by their mature and polished performance.

A similar story is true of rising ska-punk stars GROWN AT HOME; even the most reluctant ska fan would struggle not to find their foot stomping along to the beat and enjoying the party mood created by this band. Alongside the powerful drums and shrill ska-punk vocals is the twin brass assault of the trumpet and trombone, which the players discharge with military precision in between adding to the shouted vocal onslaught. The frantic energy and fun atmosphere created by Grown At Home’s catchy punk melodies only increases as the guitarist continues to blast out high speed ska rhythms. As the vocalist pogos furiously, the crowd are treated to tracks like ‘Makes Me Sick’ (featured on the cover CD of this month’s Big Cheese Magazine) and the new album track, ‘Get Ready’. Drawing the set to a close with their heaviest, most urgent song yet, they finally manage to coax the Esquires audience forward, and even able get a few couples dancing before the end.

For Milton Keynes quartet DESPERATE CYCLE it’s their first gig for three months, yet from their tight performance you wouldn’t notice, as they propel their way through their set of driving punk rock full of thrashing drums and some impressive bass lines to keep up tonight’s punk-inspired line-up. As one guitarist spins frantically, the other sneers into his mic, adding to their hard-hitting onslaught of Offspring-inspired melodies and the powerful hardcore punk shouts that are shared between bass player ‘Willy Rage’ and drummer ‘Just Pete’.

As always, Bedford’s THE DILLENQUENTS live up to their name as they bundle onstage to deliver their ever-impressive trashy punk-metal hybrid noise. Despite a few technical difficulties the fans don’t stop chanting as the terrible-trio blast their way through some of their spooky classics, like the more than slightly sinister ‘Ladykillers’, the angry punk rant of ‘Hate’ and the dark chants of ‘Home Sick Home’. A big cheer goes up for ‘Burn’, the latest song penned by The Dillenquents’ newest member, Robby ‘Killer’ Miller, before they deliver a fantastic cover of Alice Cooper’s Welcome To My Nightmare masterpiece ‘Some Folks’. Finally, it wouldn’t be a Dillenquents’ set without their piece de resistance, the unique cover of Van Morrison’s ‘Brown-Eyed Girl’, lovingly reworked and renamed, ‘Shit Bitch Whore’. Delightful.

Finally, who better to take over the headlining spot tonight than Esquires favourites HENRY AND THE BLEEDERS? Just like The Dillenquents, this is a band who know the importance of a good image and a good visual performance; The Bleeders arrive on stage armed with an upright bass, perfectly quaffed fifties-esque haircuts and each swigging from a bottle of beer before launching into their set of driving, up tempo songs, propelled forward by bouncing guitar, slapped bass and gravely, growling vocals.