Up-C Down-C Left-C Right-C ABC + START

65daysofstatic are on fire right now. With acclaim coming their way from all corners of the music press – this site not excepted – to call them a buzz band is to sell them short by a mile or seven. They’re phenomenal, and they’ve every right to be. After all, they’ve toured hard and promoted their album, ‘The Fall Of Math’, like a US soccer mom does her eight-year-old Ronaldo-wannabe. Whatever riches come their way in the not-too-distant future will be absolutely deserved. Then again, the same can be said of tonight’s supports.

Tunbridge Wells is famous for little, musically speaking, but if the fat cats in the sharp suits had brains to match the skills of their tailors, they might just realise that Jason And The Astronauts are sitting on a goldmine of potential. The Faint and their motley ilk might make the headlines, but read the subtext that bit closer and you’ll discover a band with more sass and simple punk rock energy a lot closer to home. I’ve enthused about them a tonne of times before, but it really must be said: JatA are awesome. Their presence, their intertwined rhythms, their masterful simplicity over a too-many-cooks approach (see !!!); everything screams BIG TIME. Sooner rather than later, mark my words.

To think that one fantastic surprise (JatA seem better tonight than I’ve ever seen them) could be followed by another, possibly bigger one is the stuff of fantasy, yet Up-C Down-C (or to give them their full name, Up-C Down-C Left-C Right-C ABC + Start) knock my jaw to the floor. Like buses, tonight expectation-shattering performances come in pairs. The quintet set up with two drumkits, which they proceed to make very good use of, and craft lengthy prog-cum-post rock symphonies that rise and fall like Sigur Ros on a trampoline. Sometimes it feels like Gentle Giant being battered by the brute strength of Zeppelin at their bombastic best; at others, like the soundtrack to some acid-fuelled trip incorporating pixies and fairy wings. They play maybe two songs, fleshed out by what must be sections of improvisation, and climax with a shudder felt as far away as Birmingham. Birmingham, Alabama.

Which leaves 65dos to do what they do. Speaking frankly, they’re the weakest act of the evening, simply because they merely match expectations rather than exceed them. Which is no bad thing whatsoever when you’re one of the finest touring bands in the UK. Much has already been written about them on this site, so check out the other articles. I, meanwhile, will go get my hearing fixed. Unless this buzzing sound is meant to be there…?

Old picture of JatA taken by Katie Carnie. Check out her website for more band photos an' t'ings.