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BBC
Southampton's Abbie Collins went along to check them out.
Fourpiece
Tomboy kicked off the evening and strutted out onto the stage with an air of old
school showmanship about them. They certainly delivered.  | | Tomboy |
Their
retro-infused glam, garage rock came crashing off the stage, complimented by some
impressive, if slightly over-the-top rock poses from brothers Ollie and Duncan.
The siblings
took on duel operatic, rock style vocals which ranged from Iron Maiden style wails
to Bowie-like warbles and carried off a stage act that could have put Spinal Tap
to shame.
Bowie's influence was obviously strong and could also be heard in the Ziggy-inspired
song False Exit. As the final song in their set, the melancholic ballad had some
interesting chord progressions and lovely little details such as a tumbling bass
riff to break up the verses.
The emotionally charged song was all too much for Duncan who collapsed on the
floor in a heap but still managed to strum out the dying chords on his acoustic!
 | | Plastic
Toys |
Plastic
Toys got off to a slippery start with frontman Jon's guitar simply refusing to
perform. But they soon gathered momentum and with his guitar fixed, Jon led his
team of glam, goth rockers through their electro-clash set with bags of style
and charisma. The
Toys made full use of the Jongleurs speakers creating an incredibly crisp, near-perfect
sound as they blasted out songs such as potential floor-filler Let Me Feel the
Love and a deliciously sleazy version of Peggy Lee's Fever. It's surely only a
matter of time before these guys are snapped up and on the road to success.
Lastly we were
treated to some full-on hardcore prog metal from five-piece A World Asleep. The
lads immediately drew us in with some intense and complex arrangements which unfortunately,
were slightly lacking in hooks.  | | A
World Asleep |
Much
like The Mars Volta, A World Asleep make the type of music that demands concentration.
Their manic style and experimental metal surges, while excellently performed,
took a bit of getting used to and no doubt require more than one listen to appreciate
fully. The
lads totally engrossed themselves in their music and although that's admirable,
it would have been nice to see a bit more audience interaction from them to break
up the intensity of the music.
They've got some great ideas but with a few more hooks to keep the listener enthralled
and some killer choruses to stick in the brain, they could become something pretty
special. Where
you at the gig? What did you think of Tomboy, PlasticToys and A World Asleep?
Have your say on our music
messageboard.
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