Alisha's Attic/Nut/Mundy/Octopus

NUT appears first, being the diminutive girl singer with a too tightly controlled indie sound band. Their stuff seems too well structured to really sound good and the fact that nobody dances is nothing but proof of this. It's a good thing, though, to hear chords played on the bass guitar - and this, combined with guitar effects and Nut's voice, sometimes evoke the Cocteau Twins. But that could be a back handed compliment.

Next to appear are Alisha's Attic, the highest profile (and hairstyle) act on the bill. Apparently they are produced by Dave Stewart out of the Eurythmics, and lo and behold, they sound like Shakespear's Sister. Coming across "uncannily" like that act, with well produced radio singles, (I am I feel being just the first), they also come over all rock'n'leather trousers when they go on the road. You never thought they had it in them.

Mundy, up next, saves the evening. He is a Birr bloke who literally gets the birds to eat out of his hands. They hop and twitter and pogo about, singing along to lyrics they know so well in an unstinting show of loyalty. High point of his set is most definitely Life's A Cinch, which incorporates the words of Row, Row, Row Your Boat in a fashion significant of real rock and roll. The question while listening to this is whether to laugh or cry, to gobble up the fun of the incongruous lyrics, or to interpret from the tortured singing that the parodied "life's a bitch" platitude is a pathetic understatement.

Lowpoint is a chunk of "acoustic", solo, electric guitar cheese, a dense format which rarely works unless, perhaps, the sound is perfect. Leave out the kooky shades also, please, Edmund. The last act is Octopus; grinding guitar noise at a huge volume, with horns and harmonica on top of it. Heavy in the worst sense.