I suppose with it being Friday 13th it is expected that something out of the ordinary may happen, well if you believe in all that superstition stuff. I arrived at the Liverpool Academy 2 that evening to a somewhat strange feeling of 'have I got the right place, the right night'.

Usually, when there is a gig taking place, the venue outside is usually bustling with people around the University, not tonight however. I'm here early and the place is dead with a sinister Sunday night feel. Has the gig been cancelled? Is it a bad turn out?

My initial thoughts were dispelled having passed through the doors and in to the bar. The place was 'chocker block' with people who had arrived extra early to catch two local bands The Aeroplanes and The Zutons, with the strangely titled Dogs Die in Hot Cars sandwiched in between.

The Aeroplanes opened the night up with some nice melodic tunes, most notably the track 'Somedays'. They are a band to keep an eye on this year as they fit in to the category of potentially great new talents just hovering under the surface. Next up came Scottish band Dogs Die in Hot Cars, another one of the current crop of new bands originating in Highlands.

Think Squeeze meets Big Country with a bit of The Proclaimers thrown in and basically get the sound of the Dogs. They also have some catchy songs and produced a good solid performance.

There is a slight Liverpool connection with them too; their new album out in the summer is produced by well known production team Alan Winstanley and Clive Langer. Langer was chief songwriter for Deaf School the Late 70s local arty group who sadly didn't get the acclaim they deserved at the time.

The Academy was full to capacity as Zuton fever was building, with the crowd chanting their name as they waited in anticipation. Familiar faces from the Merseyside music fraternity were present, including Ian Broudie who was there to witness his protégées on stage. He is the producer of the debut album, continuing his connections with the Deltasonic label.

The Zutons opened up with the aptly titled 'Zuton Fever' that demonstrates perfectly their bluesy sound with a cool funky feel. Singer David McCabe has a strong vicious vocal style that is used well on The Zutons recent successful single 'Pressure Point' - and half of Liverpool must have bought a copy. A great track to use for the start of a stress management video!

The rest of line up features Sean Payne - Drummer (brother of Howie from The Stands) Russell Pritchard - Bass guitar Boyan Chowdhury- Vocals & Lead guitar and Abi Harding on Saxophone. Abi certainly adds another dimension to their sound and is a great addition to the line up.

They featured tracks from the forthcoming album including 'Creepin and a Crawlin' a track omitted from the debut album. Other standout tracks to be released include 'Confusion' and 'Havana Gang Brawl', out on the 19th April. Overall the Zutons performance was excellent.

Words: Dave Monks