Joy

>ABDOUJAPAROV,
ART BRUT + RHESUS

LONDON, METRO - 09.04.04

A triple bill of bands from the London scene at The Metro tonight, with each at a very different stage in their development.

RHESUS are just starting to gain a little bit of attention, following on from a series of exhilarating gigs around London, and a cameo on Art Brut's contribution to the next Angular Records 'New Cross' compilation (to which Rhesus have also donated a track).

Tonight, they ply a steadily filling Metro with early Manics glam punk rock n roll, with the occasional

scrawl of a freeform feedback thrown in for good measure. It's a combination that works well, inviting a crowd of uninitiated heads, my own included, to nod along in time, but despite the big guitars and impressive vocals, there's something missing which prevents us making a real connection with the band. Still early days though, and if they can build on the solid base they've demonstrated tonight, Rhesus could attract a fervent following.

One step further down the art rock road, we find ART BRUT, long term Joyzine faves & current NME darlings, with a bonafide underground hit on their hands (although sadly debut single 'Formed a Band' narrowly missed out on a top 40 slot and the band's dream of a Top of the Pops performance), Art Brut have grown visibly in stature with the attention that has been lavished upon them of late, and tonight deliver on the hype better than I have ever seen them before.

A crowd that had contained a 50/50 mix of fans and those who had read the hype and were ready to snipe the band down at the first sign of weakness are immediately putty in

frontman Eddie Argos'

hands, and by the time they've plucked the members of Rhesus out of the audience for a blistering, anthemic rendition of 'Art Brut - Top of the Pops', the lines are being screamed back at them with lung bursting intensity by all present.

Even before this triumphal moment, the likes of 'Modern Art' and 'Bad Weekend' had been played with a searing self belief and delivered with endearing humour, guitarists Ian and Chris Chinchilla taking the opportunity afforded them by Eddie's frequent rambles amongst the front rows to take centre stage themselves, while Freiderika beams from side stage and Mike drums his whole set standing up without missing a beat as they skronk their way through the band's now customary musical take on abstract expressionism. "That's right, abstract expressionism is a fucking mess! Jackson Pollock was taking the piss out of you!" shrieks Eddie,

shortly before introducing 'Moving to LA' as a piece of pop-art.

This is the performance of a band stepping up to the plate, looking the doubters straight in the face and then

blowing their heads clean off. A band not content with the fleeting affections of "the nation's biggest selling (for which read only) weekly music publication". A band who want to capture your heart and mind, to inspire you, to change your life.

And the most thrilling thing is, to quote 'Formed a band', they've only just started.

The same cannot be said of ABDOUJAPAROV frontman Fruitbat, whose day in the sun came a decade ago with the similarly eccentric London pranksters Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine. Since then, Fruitbat and his Carter band mate Jim Bob have retained a cult following for their ensuing projects, many of whom have turned out in force tonight.

The music is of the uncomplicated, brash, but catchy three chord punk variety, but is filled with sufficient hooks to get the pogoers pogoing, while Fruitbat's observations on British culture, drinking and being a middle aged rocker with an expanding waistline keep the rest of us entertained.

We get a couple of cover versions thrown in to the middle of the set too, and while most pub bands could whip up a similar version of 'Ever Fallen in Love With Someone (You Shouldn't've)', it's such a good song that nobody really cares.

But then it happens, they play that song, the song for which I reserve more personal venom than the combined back catalogues of Starsailor and Jet. They play 'Glad All Over' by The Dave Clarke Five.

Admittedly my dislike of the song stems as much from non-musical reasons as from its insipid third rate Monkee-isms, but I had been

foolish enough to believe that as long as I stayed away from Capital Gold radio, my chances of ever having to hear it again were fairly minimal.

Abdoujaparov finish strongly with a couple of fast paced rockers, for which the singer of Rhesus is once again dragged out of the crowd, but it's too late, the mood has been broken, my goodwill towards them disintegrated.

Click here for more pictures from tonight's gig.

Read more about Art Brut here or visit their website at http://listen.to/artbrut

Abdoujaparov can be found here

While, Rhesus' official site is at www.rhesus.info