Sonic Cathedral

So often the 24-hour comedown period after a frantic weekend, this Monday evening happens to be pretty unique. The local chavs and Radio 1 listeners may have opted for sold-out shows by both Kanye West and Scouting For Girls at opposite ends of the city, but those of us with musical taste buds still intact would rather be here amidst the other 50 or so members of the congregation worshipping at the Sonic Cathedral.

The capital's long-standing epitome of all things ‘shoegaze’ (God, I HATE that phrase) is making its second venture to Nottingham featuring a line-up that ranks alongside one of the most impressive DiS has seen this year.

Okay, so some of you may think we're bound to say that having opened proceedings with a customary DJ set, but with tonight's headliners having just released possibly their best record to date, not to mention a rare appearance by Spacemen 3 legend Sonic Boom behind the decks, Monday 26 has been ringed in red marker pen ink on the calendar for some time.

The Tamborines are a sprightly start, mixing surprisingly energetic drones with a West Coast organ sound (they're Brazilian and are based in London, before you ask) which recalls the likes of Revolving Paint Dream or Jane From Occupied Europe while the tambourine-shaking (obviously) of keyboard player Luciana Grave is reminiscent of many a C86-era band gone by, not to mention the Twiggy-esque poses accompanying every move. It's all good though and 'What Took You So Long' and '31st Floor' are like the Dandy Warhols revisited through distortion while 'Sally O'Gannon' sounds like pop songs probably did way back when The Byrds were flying 'Eight Miles High' and so forth.

Miranda Lee Richards may be a former cohort of Anton Newcombe - indeed those of you who've seen Dig! will need no introduction here - but from her hushed demeanour through her quietly twisted semi-acoustic country repertoire you wouldn't really be able to tell. Maybe it's the fact she looks quite healthy, smiles a lot during and between songs and even apologises at one point for moving from one side of the stage to the other to play a keyboard that makes her only partially visible from the bar. Although not necessarily fitting in with the whole Sonic... theme of the night, there's a strangely alluring twang about her performance that keeps everyone's attention patiently fixed throughout.

And so we have The Warlocks. Over four years since their last appearance in Nottingham and with a stripped-down line-up of just five members, no one is quite sure what to expect. Their last performance at the Rescue Rooms was a messy-but-triumphant affair that still lingers in the memory, and with a much wider back catalogue to choose from this evening, the omens look good.

New addition to the ranks, guitarist Ryan McBride - yet to even record with the band as it happens - looks accomplished and as the first chords of 'So Paranoid' ring out, plays like a veteran who's been here as long as he can remember. The main focus though is around frontman/guitarist Bobby Hecksher, essentially to The Warlocks what the aforementioned Newcombe is to the Brian Jonestown Massacre, and if the first half of the set is an exorcism of sorts to the demons that make Heavy Deavy Skull Lover such engaging listening, the second half of the set is a blast through the past, culling the best moments from each of the band's previous three long-players.

One thing that does make The Warlocks stand head and shoulders above their contemporaries though is the way they maximise the use of two drummers to such devastating effect. Sure, there is a sonic ambivalence in the heavy, effects-laden guitar sound that is hard to ignore either, but THOSE drums really make an astonishing presence that leaves one and all quaking long after Hecksher et al leave the stage.

So much so, in fact, that I'm gonna start the campaign for every band to employ a second drummer right here. Totally mesmerising.

Photo:* Grant Peterson*