Jarcrew

During a frenetic ‘Sad French Death Metal’, Jarcrew frontman Kelson Mathias jerks spasmodically off stage into a gaggle of bemused punters who seem unsure whether to form a conga line behind him or offer him some loose change and hope he goes away.

Indeed, it's difficult to know what to make of 'Welshies' Jarcrew (who hail from the sleepy town of Ammanford, nestled at the foot of the Black Mountains). Their fractured sound draws on everything from dub to Krautrock, from pop to post rock; their song titles bear no relation to the songs whatsoever, and Mathias’ yelping vocal style renders much of their lyrics indechpriable anyway.

Yet, amid the confusion there is some clarity, recent single ‘Paris And The New Math’ is a perfect pop-rock fusion, as brilliant as the title suggests; a thunderous ‘Capobaby’ makes the floor shake; and ‘Boy Wonder’, dedicated to Eddie Kidd, is as thrilling as any of their hero’s daredevil stunts.

Jarcrew aren’t yet as exciting as the motorcycling stuntman (renowned for jumping over stationery objects), especially when they wheel out the plodding, 10-minute ‘Bill Carson’ (Carson is apparently a famed ‘spaghetti western’ actor). That said the tank-topped foursome are heading in the right direction, although given Mathias confrontational tête-à-tête with his audience (stroking people's hair, nicking their beer & cigarettes, dancing with other people's girlfriends... you get the idea...) one hopes this doesn’t mean a spell in casualty.