Issue 4 / 7 OCT
Featured: DR GONZO / FALLING & LAUGHING / ELLE S'APELLE / SCC

Dr Gonzo kicked off our Autumnal (that is a word, I've checked) Hotdog with a thunderous performance to a packed out room – which was quite an achievement for the first slot of a 4xband bill. What I didn't know at the time was that it was to be their last gig, for various reasons I heard…Bum-nuts! Uplifting, heart-on-sleeves Jangle revivalists they were (as Yoda might say), nodding to heroes such as The Wonder Stuff and mixing it in with more contemporary sounds. I think it was the first 5-piece I've seen at TropDog, It was pretty full-on, and It was damn fun. Check out Dave Gonzo's ace solo stuff here and also Sick Fiction, James Gonzo's brilliantly atmospheric indie/dance solo project.

Falling and Laughing were up next, now temporarily out of service (in-between bassists) but seriously, look out for their forthcoming return because these are one of my favorite choices for 2008. Duncan is quite simply the god of chord-gazers. Like Death Cab on a folk-trip. Ben Gibbard style vocals morph across key-shifting melodies into that Nick Drake sound...But I'm not that up on my folk so forgive me. Drums galloped gleefully along with 'No-Root-Notes-Allowed' bass lines – like Sea and Cake with less jazz. Awesome stuff – Check 'em out here.

Technically Sunset Cinema Club rounded off the night as we always do at Tropical Hotdog - but I'm not going to review myself. Feel free to comment on this blog if you fancy it!

This line up was inevitably all about Elle S'Appelle. Liverpool's next big band methinks, and so do peeps like the ever-growing Moshi Moshi Records, who released their first single recently. Trying to get this done quickly as possible without reducing myself into some wet quivering fan-boy: ES'A are a 3-piece with the tightest drummer, the best male singer/bassist I have ever seen (think Sparks but without the falsetto, cus he's got that high-as-fuck bono range) and a cute scouse-girl playing a wicked old vintage organ - all making these thumping, catchy, lovely-sweet (but not-too sickly) Pop anthems that sum up the entire Liverpool Lo-Fi Scene (Sorry, I said it – but it does exist) without being some carbon copy of some lesser established US band and without coming off as pretentious or 'indier-than-thou'. Check 'em out if you haven't already, we (SCC) will be supporting them at the Barfly with our other forthcoming Liverpool 'hotdog imports, goFASTER>> 19th Feb. Tops!

Gx