Worcester Music Forum

My gig of the year so far though has to be last week's mighty ska-punk-fest in aid of St Richards Hospice at the Gun Tavern in Worcester. First up were Evesham jazzy-reggaeish loungecore acoustic duo A+R aka Ash and Rachel aka Thick As Thieves who've only been gigging for

a matter of weeks. They're looking to form a full band soon but could probably do with a change of their dodgy Myspace handle - early days though!

I last saw Skankbox at the Firefly and I can honestly say that I hardly recognized tonight's polished outfit from the bunch of raw 17-year olds from a few weeks ago. They've added Jan on sax to top up the faultless rhythm of the mostly Specials-ish sound with a smattering of dub thrown into the mix. This has to be the most improved outfit I've ever seen in such a short space of time - and they're apparently in the middle of their A-levels - well best of luck guys!

Good to see Em, Dan and Kieran of Cobweb Dilemmas - recently reviewed on Planetsound - also Skaboy James who takes better band photos than me anyday of the week - can we see some of them soon please mate?

You might remember BSN[4:20] as the band who cover the Four Non-Blondes classic 'What's Up' - well that's only part of the sparkling offering from the Stourbridge-based outfit who've filled the ska-punk space left by Leominster's finest Toasted Egg Sandwich (because they're all at college). If you want a genuine Madness/Specials feel with loads of flashing lights - then with numbers like 'Leaving Home' and 'Trouble and Strife' you need look no further - quality stuff!

'We always start with a song we've never done before' said The Donns frontman Stu and a somewhat bluesy intro kicked into an emotional night for the best live act in the two counties doing the rounds. There's a Black Kids enthusiasm to the Donns that infects their dedicated shiny happy following and I'm looking forward to checking out the 24-hour party people's ska-popping feelgood live CD - out soon!