It’s so confusing, tonight is the first gig in a 20 date tour organised by the NME headlined by the indie trio the Enemy. The Carling Academy, formerly the Venue was packed with students keen to see one of the hottest acts of the year. The lineup included the Wombat, lovable psychedelic lads from Liverpool and Lethal Bizzle one of the oddest acts I have seen supporting an indie band.
Generally speaking the audience warmed to the Wombats, slightly absurd yet quite amusing the Wombats were quite enjoyable yet totally unmemorable. Lethal Bizzle enjoyed the same welcome that 50 Cent received at the 2004 Reading Festival (minus thankfully the bottles of urine) and The Enemy went down a storm. The Jam lookalike trio have some great memorable songs guts and are full of energy yet Tom lacks the presence of a young Weller. Having seen the Jam in 1982 I was inspired by their politics, energy and sense of being. Who knows maybe the Enemy need a miners strike and a three day week to inspire them.
Written by John Rahim