Bang Bang Eche, Polka Party, Dark Sparks @ The Fly

A night of impressive drummers.

Opening up was Sheffield's Dark Sparks. I really enjoyed these guys, really tight with big drums and a great groove that sounded far less emo than expected. Fronted by the vocally strong, synth wielding Leigh Greenwood this was definitely an act to look out for again.

It took me a little while to get into Polka Party but after a few songs (and a few beers) I started to enjoy their raw-ness. Another great drummer, looking effortless through a fairly taxing set.

All the way from New Zealand were the synth-punk Bang! Bang! Eche! and pretty damn cool. Between the killer samples and the 'fuck you' demeanor, the whole band rocked out really hard, with barely a moment between tracks. In a few years these guys have had success in the US with their debut EP, and have been playing the festival circuits, so this was an awesome chance to see them in a small venue right up close.



Not a bad venue, nothing flash but better than your average basement.

Matt Deighton, T Mandrake, Dixie, Parish Music Box @ Water Rats

By far my favourite act of the evening was T Mandrake, a nine piece (of which only eight were present, but I'm not sure there was much room left on stage) which I can only describe as a mix of rock, soul and jazz. Well worth checking out.

Dixie were good, but after the impression left by the T Mandrake horn section (ok, in particular the trumpeter) it was going to take a lot to better.

Venue (Water Rats) is cool, apart from the water coming from the roof, but that's still rather rock and roll.

Glass Candy, Desire, A Mountain of One, Mike Simonetti @ Cargo

Great electro. Fantastic night. Although the drinks really caught up with me the next day.

Mike Simonetti was the DJ between acts, and mixing in out of the bands was a great novelty.

Desire kicked off the evening and got the room moving early. Details are fuzzy but I do remember enjoying it.

Mountain of One not so great. Not bad, just not great. The point of the DJ was rather lost on me though as I couldn't find him in the mix.

Glass Candy were gold standard this evening. Go out and buy there records now. They are one of the most engaged bands I've seen for a long time.

The venue was Cargo, never a disappointment. If you've never discovered this gem in Shoreditch I thoroughly recommend making an evening out of it.