Viva Voce

For a band whose name means 'word of mouth' in Italian, and one who have the honour of supporting everyone's favourite Natalie Portman-endorsed indie-poppers, The Shins, tonight Viva Voce’s songbook doesn't seem familiar to the majority of those around me. That's a pity.

Last year's brilliant long-player Get Yr Blood Sucked Out should have picked up far more plaudits than a gushing DiS review ( it scored 9/10 from your correspondent) and a few other isolated bits of press. Perhaps the band (and their label) know this: hence forthcoming release Viva Voce Loves You, a compendium of their choice cuts to date.

Back to tonight, and much of the interest seems to stem from eager young men casting longing eyes in the direction of vocalist/guitarist Anita Robinson. Sorry, guys... see that hairy male bashing the drums to her left? That's her husband. Best wind your necks in, as he looks like he could do something similar to your heads at a moment's notice.

Musically, too, there's a certain malevolence lying beneath their sweet, sweet melodies: 'From The Devil Himself' and 'Faster Than A Dead Horse' are both insistent, bluesy rackets that hint towards this darker side (“Six million people, six million ways, to do six million kinds of damage” coos Kevin on the former). Their gaze is intense, notably not at each other, but out at some invisible point towards the back of the room. Perhaps this is how marital issues are resolved: 30 minutes of pounding indie-rock beats a blazing row any day in my book.

Whereas other musical spouses opt to sing saccharine love songs for each other (Joy Zipper spring to mind, good as they are), Viva Voce would much rather rock out; though that's infinitely easier on these ears, a few arms are folded tonight as Anita busts out her umpteenth extended solo. Luckily, Kevin refrains from any Bonham-esque indulgence, preferring to engage in more experimental pursuits - is that a theremin? I think it is.

So you want reference points, right? Ridiculous analogies? How about The Breeders jamming with Zeppelin? You didn't want that at all, did you? Actually, if you know nothing about this band, probably best wait for the upcoming compilation's release: their live show's relatively enjoyable, but on record they're so much more than an entertaining sideshow.