Worcester Music Forum

A quick trip down to 'the local' for a swift reprise of last week's studio act but kicking off proceedings at the Marrs Bar were one of Worcestershire's rarest species - I'm talking about a genuine hardcore metal outfit of course

Evesham-based Freekilos have the forbidding looks that dovetail in nicely with their furious yet bludgeoning riffs. Oh and I did appreciate their barefaced lie that they were 'going to slow it down a bit for a ballad' - hah!

Hope you enjoyed Epsilon Red in the studio last week - if so you'd have been even more impressed with their set tonight as I really got a feel of the tricks the tight Worcester threesome pull to string their unique set together. Never seen a guitarist play consistently so high up the fretboard, nor a octave-divided bass used as lead - and with a wah-wah pedal to boot! Sure they use a few effects - but it's all put to good use to produce their Rush/Muse-ish ouput - classy stuff!

Unbilled visiting outfit for the night were The Housewives - originally hailing from Malvern and Worcester but now relocated to London - shame! And that's because we're missing out (for once) on a high-energy synco/fusion/skat bunch of genuine crowdpleasers with a genuine on-stage rapport that'd go down a storm on the same bill as AWWBLOT - or so said Brian Marr on the night - quite right mate! At least they record their music in these parts - guess it won't be long before we see them again too - not to be missed!

Now I don't know what's happened to Evesham's The Irony since they opened up on the Friday Session stage at Nozstock. I first caught them about 6 months ago but they suddenly appear to have really got their sound together bigtime. They're a melodic bunch of powerpoppers with tight harmonies, seamless riffs and some great tunes thrown in - none better in my view than 'A Man's Fears' - and we all know what that means come the year-end, don't we? Plus - any band that can rhyme 'philosophy' with 'vocabulary' will always get my vote!