Bedford Esquires Thirst Club Saturday 17 January 2004.
So what does Indie mean these days, anyway? We killed off Oasis several years ago, Travis are taking their last breath, and Stereophonics seem to be lacking rhythm, so what is our hope for the future? On a local scale, at least? The Thirst BOTB is normally a good indicator; last year, folders and ties were all-the-rage, so at the first Indie heat in the competition, who's defining the genre this year?
First up, STILL LIFE are very very indie. A couple of them pretend that they're not by wearing baseball caps and things, but there's just something about them. Perhaps it's the way they start the set with a growing cacophony of children's toy instruments. Perhaps it's their insistence to shout "ROCK!" in every song without coming to any kind of a climax. Maybe it's the superfluous keyboard player, on a night off from his IT course. Or perhaps it’s just their music, Toploader-in-a-Red-Hot-Chili-Peppers-cover-band. Who knows?
CHESTER too, are rather indie. Reflecting the success of bands such as Stellastarr* and Franz Ferdinand, Chester seem intent on gazing so hard at their footwear they all get nasty headaches. The late 80s indie force is strong with these ones: huge, reverberant guitars, check; fey, disembodied vocals, check; long hair, check; weak set closer... Hang on a minute. For most of their 30 minutes, though, Chester play well, although suffering heavily from the unbelievably sparse crowd and entirely dead atmosphere.
Did someone say "dead atmosphere?" Someone must have let slip to SUNBIRDS , kicking their rock n roll into action with manic vigour, just as the evening looks like its died on its arse. Although hailing from Leighton Buzzard, The Sunbirds seem to have been spending their lives drinking from the same sleazy Southern bars as Kings of Leon, and bonding over a love of Led Zeppelin and The Doors with The 22-20s. It's loud, it's filthier than a Dixieland whorehouse, and it's got more attitude than a truck full of Strokes. Individual songs and band members are unimportant; there's a song about whiskey, one called something about Funk and the most unhygienic harmonica sound Esquires has ever heard, this has been the most important 30 minutes from a local band in Bedford for some time.
The winners? The Sunbirds. And, on a performance like this, it's going to take a lot to beat them in the next round...
