The 22-20s

Fronted by scrawny converse wearing, mop haired, Sam Forrest, who snarls disdainfully, there’s no avoiding the obvious Nirvana connection here. That’s not to say they are just mere echoes of the past, but if you’re going to be compared to someone, there’s no shame in it being one of your hero’s.

This evening’s set list is sizzling, as demonstrated with the enraged 'Not Everyone' and the static feedback steaming off other such works of art from the menu like 'Unsatisfied'. With dark punk anthems packed with a vibrant energy, plenty of feedback and hair tossing as fast as they scrape out their power chords, these Mancurian rockers score high marks at their first London show for loving it loud. Even Sam’s beer burps into the microphone get a cheer.

Sliding on stage equipped with their modern day blues, the 22-20s enigmatically appear in black suits as if re-living a Reservoir Dogs moment. Known for hammering out raw raucous tunes, they stick to this winning formula.

Tonight, they get even more down and dirty with bottleneck slide guitars next to Jerry Lewis keyboards. While lanky bassist Glen Bartup excessively gyrates into his bass, singer Martin Trimble growls out his vocals distinctively with fervour. Their serious passion for rock is most apparent when they get to 'Such A Fool', which is rife with all the bitterness of time wasting relationships. And 'King Bee' is just too cool for words to the point where you can almost taste the free spirited days of Woodstock.

As always they remain unapologetic for being aloof as they vigorously discard their instruments when they leave the stage. This confirms their true rock ‘n’ roll sentiments, the difference being unlike some of their contemporaries, they mean it.