Wednesday 16/07/08 CSS @ KOKO, Camden Town

Steaming on stage to 'Rhythm is a Dancer' shows you mean business. But can Brazilians CSS live up to their youthful audacity? Not exactly. They gained a Cooper Temple Clause member between debut LP ‘Cansei de Ser Sexy’ and follow up ‘Donkey’. Adding a cheeky English chappie into the mix however, hasn’t matured the sound all that much.

Their innocent ethics appeal to the slightly juvenile. On first reflection, this is not necessarily a bad thing, but there's no clear progression to speak off. Lovefoxxx’s Michael Jackson stage prowl is still there. She rocks the blue print catsuit and black glitter boa like no other, but the added oomph was left in the changing rooms.

The night doesn’t really get going until track three’s ’Off The Hook’ hits its crescendo, and finally the crowd wake up. Maybe the iTunes competition winners who made up tonight’s audience are not CSS’ usual ears. ‘Alala’ provides some much deserved interaction as the band jostle for position. But they exist in two separate groups, band, and singer. Never quite bouncing off each other.

After the shortest stage exit, the samba six return to show what they could have been doing all evening. The encore delivers. Ashamedly the highlight is breakthrough single ‘Let’s Make Love and Listen to Death From Above’. Not simply because it is the most successful offering to date, but because it is their best crack at an original pop song. It is that good.

If CSS began with the energy they discovered in the encore, then this would have been deserving of the pearlescent party balloons on stage. As it was, there was something lacking. No one wants to utter the phrase ‘one hit wonders’, but based on this good, but not great performance, you cannot help but begin... one... hit...w...o...n...