King Prawn, Cynical Smile, Dog Toffee

Derby, Victoria Inn

April 11 1998


3 bands, 4 quid, cracking gig. Nice one. Expect the interviews next issue, cos there simply wasn't enough room in this one for them!! Anyway, an evening where if you doubted that there was good British bands around, you should've walked away convinced otherwise. If of course, you could be bothered to walk there in the first place. Personally, I took the car instead.

But first, Dog Toffee. Mere minutes after the ordeal of being interviewed by me, they took to the stage showing no ill effects. first time that I've heard them, and so unfamiliarity prevents anything deep being said. But the music sounded pretty good, the promise that they'd made that there was always a tune underneath everything seemed to be the truth. The set may have ended to relative silence, but most opening acts do, and it won't continue for long. Unknowns previously, but no more.

Cynical Smile. Once more, in a live setting the thoughts of RATM are removed as far as I'm concerned. Airing a few new songs, which sounded groovier than the material off the Stupas album, they may not have had the crowd eating out of their collective hands, but with any luck, they should have converted a few. Ed made the most of what is a small stage. including some painful looking backflips, and finishing the set stood on his bonce. Which isn't your normal end to a set. Gunga Din, Scum, the Circle, Feeling Retarded, it all sounds better live than on the album, anfd the album is pretty good. They're touring in June with Stuck Mojo, and with any luck, that should leave a good impression with a lot more people. A small victory, to borrow a song title from some unknown band.

The Prawn sizzled tonight. Oh come on, if you've ever seen them live then you'll know that they have that effect on people. Totally mad, well Babar is at least, they leave you with a grin on your face, and the ability to use some of the worst cliche's known to man. Not that they're a cliche. Far from it. They're simply one of the best live bands in the UK. Shit, I almost danced.

Material from the new album dominated the set, and sounded amazing. Not You Punk should've been a hit. It's so catchy. Racist Copper, is the slow mellow song, according to Babar, “well, until the end bit when it gets nasty”. And it does. The quotes are too numerous to mention. The songs great. Babar takes over vocals for Role Model, with Al switching to bass. Then Al moves to guitar, Aryan to bass, and it's the welcome return of Alien Spawn. The third final song of the night finally brings things to a close. Indeed, as the Babar one said, Time waits for no prawn. Catch this one while you can. Fry-teningly good! Good job there's no editor for this thing, I think I might have just been fired for that one.