Although I only catch the last 3 songs of 5 piece FORTUNE DRIVE's set it was enough to pique my interest. Their sound owed a debt to heavy grungy riffing but with an underlying funkiness. One song in particular boasted a swirling driving riff that was mesmeric and their final song even hinted at an almost Kinksian songwriting talent. Certainly a name to keep an eye on.
THE RESEARCH hail form Wakefield and consist of Georgie on bass, Sarah on drums and Russell on keyboards and vocals. They are a quirky bunch that bash out bass heavy, cheap electronica with witty lyrics. A bit like a bargain basement Stereolab. Their vocal harmonies are very impressive and their interaction with the crowd is amusing and self deprecating. In fact they manage to win over a significant part of the crowd to the point of a spontaneous rendition of Happy Birthday upon hearing it was Russell’s birthday the day before. Georgie brings the glamour, Sarah the fey indieness and Russell an awful Elvis jumper and trucker cap combination that must take a serious amount of guts to wear around Wakefield town centre on a Saturday night. One of their songs revels in a chorus of ‘I love you / but I’m scared I’ll fuck it up’ (and who hasn’t felt like that?) which probably sums up their charm better than I can. I’m not sure their innate strangeness wouldn’t eventually rub to the point where I suspect I’d buy their album and play it to death for a couple of weeks and then never touch it again. It would be a good couple of weeks though.
And so onto this week's next big thing MAXIMO PARK. Already being compared to Franz Ferdinand, The Futureheads and Bloc Party (and bizarrely signed to Warp records) they are accordingly tonight dressed in black shirts and skinny ties. As you’d expect their guitars are suitably angular, their time signatures difficult and their songs stop and start with alarming regularity. Alongside the usual influences of Gang of Four, Wire et al you can also detect a distinct Smiths element and more than a passing nod at Sparks. Lead singer Paul Smith in particular wants to assure you of his strangeness with his wild staring eyes and jerky dancing but rather alarmingly looks like a young Alan Partridge complete with comfortable suit and comb over. He also sings with a distinct Newcastle accent and most of the songs appear to be concerned with escaping from the small towns they grew up in. This gives the opportunity for the highly imaginative London audience to explore their knowledge of the North East with football chants culminating in the bizarre sound of ‘Shearer, Shearer’ being directed at the band.
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Maximo Park are an interesting enough proposition but quite honestly how much art punk do you need? Especially if it’s becoming quite formulaic and upon first listen doesn’t offer any songs to rival Franz’s ‘Take me Out’ or ‘Darts of Pleasure’, the Futureheads ‘Decent Days and Nights’ or Bloc Party's ‘Little Thoughts’. These bands tend to inspire admiration and can quite happily fill the coolest of dance floors but are generally too cold and abrasive to inspire mass devotion amongst their fans. I’m beginning to have my fill of jerky, wiry post punk and unless theress a little more on offer (see Bloc Party's forthcoming album) I’ll think I’ll pass.
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