The Fireflys, The Belgrave Scandal, Ghosts - Bull and Gate, London - Monday 18th September 2006

An entertaining Monday night at the Bull and Gate, the famous pub venue in Kentish Town, where the Walkmen, the Cooper Temple Clause, British Sea Power, and, er, Keane have previously played. The pub and venue were packed from very early on, primarily to see the first band it seemed.

Ghosts had signed a record deal that day, with Atlantic Records no less. They arrived on stage to a full room, and something of a heroes welcome. Their 20 minute set sounded nice (if I'm being charitable), forgettable (if I'm not). The songs themselves were fine, quite radio friendly, but as they walked off, I couldn't remember how a single one of their songs went. I'm sure their major label loves them, their fans certainly loved them, but they were a bit uninspiring for me.

Next up, and playing to a dramatically emptier room, were The Belgrave Scandal, Kentish heroes. Their set was marred a little by the sound engineer, who managed to make the bass sound like a detuned radio. It was fine for the first 3 songs, then he started to fiddle with it, and the sound really suffered in the middle of the set. This clearly annoyed the band (and rightly so), but they played through it nevertheless.

Their version of The Collection tonight was particularly angry, and they seemed to be taking the adversity as a chance to show some balls and attitude. A decent audience were moving about on their feet, and seemed to appreciate the quality of the songs. The best band from Tunbridge Wells indeed - they seem to be growing in stature with every show they play, and others are starting to agree that they are not half bad.

Headline act were The Fireflys - they sounded very well drilled and practiced, with some good tunes as well. They kind of sounded like a covers band (although they were playing their own material), a big voice from the singer, and full of classic guitar riffs. Not bad, an entertaining band for 45 minutes or so.