Photo: Sofi Eln
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"There’s something not quite right here", is the general sense of unease that afternoon gigs are wrapped with, unless held outdoors in the sunshine of course. With the incessant downpour on this Saturday afternoon in North London, there’s little chance of that happening.
Projecting their bitter-sweet melodies amid pauses for cheeky banter, indie punk-popsters Dartz! help everyone forget those abysmal skies lurking outside Dingwalls today. This Teeside trio wave their northern banner loud and proud in, 'Once! Twice! Again', and 'Prego Triangulo' taken from their debut album 'This Is My Ship' (released earlier this year), while their music evokes the nostalgia of Idlewild and the density of The Futureheads,
Bassist, William K.J Anderson, and drummer Philip J. Maughan work as a double act bouncing vocals back and forth like a heated karaoke competition, minus the prize. During their last song, Phil cranks this up a notch, by launching off his drum-stool into the darkness behind. Before taking their leave, it’s time for one last joke (in a reoccurring theme) as William announces "I got-off with Todd".
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Cue Todd Logan, the singer with rural duo I Was A Cub Scout who are headlining today’s show. Todd’s first point of call is to quash the "kissing" stories laid by their recent tour support, instead, he makes his own declaration in humble racy opener, 'I Hate Nightclubs'.
As Todd tackles the guitar, keyboards, synth and vocals he demonstrates the multitasking abilities that an overzealous one-man-band busker would be proud of. Yet, he and William Bowerman IWACS’ drummer emerge as shy and reluctant stars during the course of their set, paying homage to social outsiders. This is mirrored in their music which seeps into the ears of the crowd in a stealth attack, with gems like, 'Teenage Skin', which pencils the band firmly alongside geek-chic acts, Ben Kweller and The Postal Service.
Ending in an orchestral ‘free for all’ the band invite their friends on stage for the relentless epic ‘Pink Squares’, which sees the entourage attempt to hammer the two drum kits into a pulp, in a quiet riot of a finale.
