Demo Parade

BADGER are a recently formed group from Boyle, Co. Roscommon. Lead singer David Coldbeck included, there are four guitarists. The remaining three members are bass, drums and backing vocals. Well, there’s a recipe for a noisy mess, I hear you cry, but Badger seem to know what they are doing.

‘I Don’t Know’ is the first of four songs and it’s great. The sound is big and warm with all the instruments knitting together. The playing between the guitarists is beautifully complementary. On top of this, Coldbeck has a great voice and the melody is extremely catchy. ‘The Cold Sore Blues’ is, as you would think, a 12-bar stroll but again, those guitars mesh and the resulting sound is fresh. ‘Creation Yeah Yeah!’ opens in an acoustic, folky vein and thanks to some inventively layered guitar, builds up into a cracking pop crescendo. ‘The Sleeping Judge’ closes this extremely well-crafted collection. A marvellous demo debut from Badger.

Hop are a three-piece guitar pop group based in Limerick. John Fitzgibbon handles vocals and guitar, while Mick Hinchey and Tony Roche account for bass and drums respectively. Their four-song demo opens with ‘Number One’. This is instantly catchy with its deep looping bassline, busy clattering drums and melancholic melody. Fitzgibbon is a fine singer with an assured, yet casual delivery.

‘Waste Of Space’ is white reggae in the poppy vein of early Police singles. Again, it’s instantly catchy with a great chorus but for Gold’s sake John, don’t be so hard on yourself! ‘Am I The Only One?’ opens with a heavily echoed guitar riff and that wonderful looping bass. Full points for subtlety and feel to Mr. Hinchey. Hop pull off the old ‘déjà vu’ feel here of it reminding you of something you can’t pin down and that is, after all, what makes great pop music. ‘You Know’ is again based around an echoed guitar riff but has a funkier feel and closes the tape on another, er, high note.

Neuter Boy are a young (when I say young, I mean young – one is fifteen and the other two are sixteen!) three-piece funk rock group from the Southside of Dublin. The group’s line-up is Peter Ryan (guitars and vocals), Kieran (bass) and Stez (drums). ‘Idiosyncrasy’ is the opener and it’s a big, dirty, messy, heavy thing. The first things that struck me were how well they played and their grasp of songwriting. What’s more, Ryan’s excellent voice certainly belies his years.

‘Bass Jam’ is exactly that, and to tell the truth, it’s more than slightly indulgent lads. ‘Melting Sun’ is up next and they rediscover the plot. This is a slow burner with a great slow and heavy blues feel. The melody is lovely and the whole thing has a very late ’60’s feel to it. ‘Noose’ is bang on back up to date with a slightly Nirvana-ish feel, in the change from restrained verse to all-hell-let-loose chorus. ‘Time And Blood’ is the final song and its dirty funk time again, as Neuter Boy funk off into the sunset. This really is impressive from three guys so young; if they keep it going, they are bound to get noticed!

Bone Machine are, for want of a better description, an alternative rock band. They are a four-piece comprising Alan Dobbs (vocals), Paul Condon (guitar), Robert Kehoe (bass) and James Kehoe (drums). They formed in Enniscorthy in March 1993 and this is their second demo. To attempt to describe their sound, it helps to know that their influences are The Birthday Party, The Fall and Hüsker Du among others.

‘Drunken Stranger’ is the first of four. Guitar and drums clash all over the place while the bass carefully nails it all down. Dobbs has a great snarling rasp of a voice and he rants perfectly over the poppy melee – think of a stripped down Fatima Mansions. ‘Fat On Fear’ is another pissed-off gem and here I must mention Dobbs’ excellent lyrics.

Bone Machine have it all. Although you can hear their influences, the result is an original sound and that is the difference between a potentially good band and a potentially great band. ‘Sharpenin’ Stone’ has a brutally primitive sound akin to The Cramps but with a bigger sound (or should I say noise!) ‘Bewitched’ doffs a cap to The Birthday Party with flailing rhythm and repetitive riffs.

Bone Machine are brilliant. Remember where you read it first.

• Kathryn McKinney

• Don’t forget to tune into the City Limits Youth Affairs show on Anna Livia Radio, 103.8FM, Dublin, this Saturday (and every other!) from 10am-12 noon for the complete low-down.