大象传媒

I arrived at the the Corn Exchange just in time to hear what seemed like Beatlemania-style screaming as THEE VICARS took to the stage.听 The four piece come on like a cross between The Hives and The Jam with their matching black and white dress.

The music is raw rock & roll shot through with a punk and garage band aesthetic. The band say their influences range from classic 50s rockers like Little Richard to modern revivalists such as The Mummies and Billy Childish.

The King Edward VI pupils have only been going for 6 months and gigging for a mere 3 and they already possess a manic energy on stage. But then one would hope that would be the case if you were aged between 15 and 17.

The riffs reminded me of The Clash's first album. They'll need to develop a sound which is more than the sum of their influences if they're to stand out from the crowd, but they seemed to have struck the right chord with the crowd even at such an early stage of their existence.

Next up were STUDENT, which I can't help feeling is the worst name for a band since Kitchens Of Distinction. They opened with a cover of the Arctic Monkeys' Dancefloor, which seemed like a cheap attempt to get the crowd on their side when they should be trying to impress us with their own material.

However, the ploy worked and the rest of the set showcased a wider range of styles - subtler instrumentals and singer Toby ending the set on his own. Interestingly, considering the audience was split 50-50 boy/girl, Student's bassist Hanna was the only lady on stage this evening. Does that mean rock is still a predominantly male preserve? Why aren't Bury's female population joining or forming bands? That could be much more interesting...

Third on were PERSEVERE who started with a speech. I feared the worst, but it was merely to inform us that their usual singer Chris Knox wasn't with them tonight, so guitarist Alec Jarman was stepping up to the plate.

If he was nervous, it didn't show and he proved to have a natural ease with the crowd and got them onside immediately. They believe in metal and all that entails - chugging riffs with unintelligible, deep throat vocals, but also subtler guitar work and even a didgeridoo intro!

The sound on the night seemed to muddy the guitar solos so it was quite hard to hear just how good Alec's guitar work was - and these things are obviously important in the world of metal.

The band got the best reaction from the crowd who willingly took part in the 'wall of death' (think two lines of maniacs throwing themselves at each other in a fashion which would constitute GBH if it had happened in the street outside).

The final band on were HIGH 5's ALL ROUND - singer and guitarist Ben Brown has an excellent line in staring-out the audience and they pump out a punk style thrash along the lines of Green Day or S*M*A*S*H. As with Thee Vicars, they riff along energetically, but seem to need a little bit more to give them a sound that they can call their own.

While the judges were making their decision, last year's winners Four Kicks returned to the stage and did their traditional heavy blues rock thing with the extraordinary wailing vocals of Lloyd Whitaker.

Then it was the moment we'd been waiting for, and the judges and the audience plumped for Student. They were probably the pick of the bunch - whereas the other three bands seemed to tread well-worn paths I got the sense that Student were at least trying to do something slightly different although still well within the boundaries you'd expect of a white, British indie band.

All the bands are either in their teens or barely out of them, so time is on their side. 拢500 of equipment, 500 CD pressings and a recording session at West Suffolk College will give the winners a chance to hone and develop their sound.

The BurySOUND competition proves that the local scene is still thriving. Bands are constantly forming and eventually one with that little extra something should break out and catch the national attention.

(大象传媒 Suffolk online is always looking for gig and theatre reviewers. Email us using the link at the bottom of this page if you're interested.)