The Lounge Society, Gorilla. 30th September 2022

I’m about to make the same mistake I’ve made before with The Lounge Society. Underestimating them. I did the same thing last time they played at Yes, thinking ‘yeah they’re okay’. Tonight in Gorilla I’m once again given a good slap round the chops. They’re as happy locked into a psych groove as they are tearing sharp punky hooks from every orifice of some surprisingly intricate tunes. They can round the edges off too though, with some songs (sorry I’m not great on titles with this lot) that would get any indie disco bouncing. Singer Cameron’s energy is infectious too. He’s like a jacked up Matt Bellamy, but although he feels like the focal point, they’re a four headed monster hell bent on delivering a set that’s determined not to have pilllocks like me forget how great they are. It’s not quite full in here, but there’s a definite sense that something is building and it’s nice to see that it’s not all older blokes with beards and obvious vinyl addictions (not that there’s anything wrong with that). Speaking of which, they released their debut album a month ago, which if you’ve not heard, you should treat your ears to, but as is pretty much always the case, it’s live where they really make sense. They’re not perfect, there are some songs that slip into a dirgey territory that loses me and the kids I’m surrounded by, but they are the minority and could be thought as just a breather before hair is ruffled, the drummer counts in and it’s time to except your gonna lose that pint you’re holding. That said it’s quite a calm crowd really. I think maybe it’s down to there being a lot of ideas here, songs can shift a lot and that’s catching some out, to the point that they amusingly just decide to stand still and try to look like they’re comfortable with their place in the world. If anyone’s figured that out, let me know. I’m the meantime I’ll be watching bands… and not forgetting how exciting The Lounge Society are.