Muckle Sandwich Fanzine Launch, The Jazz Bar

Published on Thursday 2 July 2009 10:09

Muckle Sandwich Fanzine Launch ***, The Jazz Bar

THE launch of new fanzine Muckle Sandwich – dedicated to promoting burgeoning local talent – got off to a successful, if rather raucous start, last night at the jazz bar.

People turned out in their droves to see The Goms, The Gillyflowers, and The Banana Sessions strut their stuff, and while there was a queue of people patiently waiting to get in upstairs, those already downstairs seemed more interested in drinking and talking loudly than paying attention to what was going on onstage.

Which wasn't all together unforgivable given the patchy, acoustic approach delivered by The Goms. Armed with bohdrans, pipes and whistles, their sub-Pogues brand of folk music is essentially a bunch of unimaginative drinking songs; the kind of ramble you'd expect from a bunch of lads who'd stumbled across a couple of acoustic guitars at a party and decided to let everyone here their rendition of Whiskey In The Jar.

The Gillyflowers, on the other hand, are a different pickle altogether. Led by three glamorous young woman all with pitch-perfect voices, they come across as a modern-day Dixie Chicks with a slight 60s pop edge.

Unfortunately, the loud yapping inside the venue drowned out any chance of hearing the group's electric fiddle and glockenspiel sounds. However, the girls' outstanding harmonising – backed by slippery bass, choppy guitars and cute drum beats – just about cut through the incessant chit-chat long enough to leave a lasting impression on those who bothered to get close enough for a good listen. They literally bounced onto the stage with delight, but even 45 minutes of dancing ensured the tempo of their jigging was reduced to a slow rumba by the time they left the stage. One to watch, though, definitely.

But as The Gillyflowers departed, so, too, did a good chunk of the audience. Which was a shame, as headliners, The Banana Sessions, are one of the quirkiest bands kicking around Edinburgh just now. Swapping a bass guitar for a tuba, and featuring one seriously creepy sounding flute, one minute they sound like a gypsy circus band, the next they're imitating the bombastic marching band sounds of Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club. And just when you find your feet tapping along to the tunes, they sneakily change rhythm and tempo to ear-pleasing effect. A great band to watch, they even managed to raise a genuine cheer from the audience for dedicating one song to that notorious tonic wine, Buckfast.

The real bone of contention here, though, was the audience. Why people bother to show up to gigs with no intention of listening to the music is hard to fathom.

It's disrespectful to the bands and annoying for those who paid good money to see good entertainment. And while Muckle Sandwich's intentions are certainly welcome to the local music scene, why no-one from the group bothered to introduce any of the bands, is a complete mystery. We wish them well, though.