Origami Bullets are this evening's opening act. They're no strangers to the 360 Club, and are back to stake a claim in the Leeds unsigned faction. The towering stature of their front man is enough to send skinny jeaned indie twigs scampering to the back, as they get underway with a burly rock sound. Wearing influences on their sleeves, Origami Bullets veer into the grunge come heavy metal mode of Soundgarden, and perhaps a touch of Nickelback's poppier rock. Musically they're consistently together, and pull off the heavy dynamic play of their songs with a polished efficiency. Some booming vocal capacities and battering guitar tones were unfortunately sidelined by the bass careering around, too high in the mix. While obviously well practiced however, the band seems aesthetically tense and static. Maybe it's down to nerves, but I think some visual enthusiasm could have really done their set justice as they've got the songs down, all they needed was to hold the crowd's attention, most of which had unfortunately petered off. If this lot build the confidence up, they could really come on.Second slot is in the hands of Tom Gee, who's got a band in tow. There's a stirring in HiFi as people seem to know about this lot, and a front row assembly forms. Warming up with their version of 'I Shot the Sheriff', it's clear to see that this band is very accomplished, and seem to have some real talent on board. This is particularly obvious in the incendiary lead licks of guitarist Chris Dawkins. Smooth, pristine funk and soul is their business. And they do it very well, but I'm going to come clean. It's a bit wedding function band for me and I end up drifting off towards the middle of the set. The audience aren't so snotty and seem to really dig the band's laidback vibe: it's the first dancing I've spotted in the crowd tonight. Tom Gee has the advantage of being highly accessible, and with the likes of Jack Johnson bringing watered down roots music into the popular domain, I'm sure he's onto a winner. A really solid performance makes them one of the better unsigned acts to have graced the 360 Club.
Topping the bill tonight is Wakefield's New Vinyl. The five piece are exponents of chunky indie-lad rock a la the raft of Yorkshire based bands riding on the coat tails of Britpop, with a few synth sounds thrown in for good measure. While nothing excitingly fresh, New Vinyl are competent performers and deliver a well comprised set of vivacious guitar pop numbers that will undoubtedly take them far. They're the kind of band that could get mileage on daytime Radio 1, with quick fix hooks and in your face choruses. Through no fault of their own really, they seem to have lost a sizeable part of the crowd, but soldier on to a few fans at the front. A good dose of guitar thrashing, and an animated front man prove they know what they're up to under the spotlights. Ok, it might be a bit rehashed and uninspired but at least they keep it playful.
