Fire In The Disco present...

The first time the term ‘shoegaze’ reared its not-so-ugly head was towards the end of the 1980s. Initially described as the perfect soundtrack to the post-rave comedown of acid house and its many sub-genres, feedback crescendos and guitar-based walls of sound provided the more subtle antidote to the electronic bleeps and beats of clubland.

Last year was billed as the year of ‘nu-rave’, not by me but those self-appointed style gurus whose columns saturate the dailies and their increasingly tiresome supplements. Bearing in mind the first coming of rave and its aforementioned successor, it seems only natural that a second wave of bands influenced by the likes of Ride, Slowdive et al are about to wash the glo-sticks and ill-advised happy hardcore cover versions away in an ocean of tremolo and distortion.

One of those bands is Model Morning (pictured), and after spending the last couple of years gradually honing their sound, not to mention their explosive live show, tonight is possibly the pinnacle of what we've seen to date. Sadly there are issues with the overall sound in the venue - Bar None is not a customised or established music venue and despite its plush setting the fact it's almost impossible to construct a suitable PA system would force many bands to pack up their gear and go home.

The fact that their rhythm section is barely audible (drums in particular) nor visible (the bass player is obscured by an ornate but pointless archway) doesn't detract from their performance, and the twin guitar duels of Rob McCleary and Chris Moore have more than a hint of the Gardener/Bell or Fielding/Smithies couplings of yesteryear. The highlight of the set though is undoubtedly 'This Town', a sonically visceral ode to the unsavoury prospect of walking through the streets of Nottingham city centre at night. Although not strictly a shoegaze outfit in the most rigid sense of the word, Model Morning are emerging as one of the most promising new guitar bands around at present. Watch this space.

For You Animals, one can't help but feel a tad nervous for them, as if there aren't enough shaking limbs and crossed fingers from the band themselves. Tonight, you see, is only their second ever gig and with no recorded material as yet or indeed a structured setlist, the likelihood for things to go wrong is quite steep.

As with the previous act, You Animals have had issues with the sound so the omens don't look good, but thankfully, being the established professionals they are, their set, for the most part at any rate, is fairly triumphant.

Established professionals you say? But I thought tonight was only the second in their history? I guess it's time to explain the full story.

Once upon a time there was a band from Derby called Komakino. Perhaps you’ve heard of them. Sadly, the band called it a day last year. Fortunately though, that didn't deter their members from continuing to make music and among You Animals' six-strong line-up are four ex-kino stalwarts.

Singer Ryan Needham is still a contorted livewire hopping from stage to bar stool and back again, while the crunching guitars of both 'Jigsaw Pieces' and 'The Roman Empire' suggest a heavier, more dynamic approach to songwriting than in their previous incarnation.

It's still early days yet of course and many of the seven songs they play tonight are either unfinished, untitled or in some cases both. The promise however, remains the same, even if the back-to-basics approach they've adopted for this project means the real hard work starts here.