Small gigs are all well and good for cheap fun and being close to the music, but too often you find yourself sat in the corner of a dingy pub trying to find something interesting to do with your beer mat whilst listening to something inoffensive but slightly dull, sounding vaguely like someone else. Here is the exception. Although primarily of the Indie/Rock genre (and with some vocals not unlike Liam Gallagher at times), Avangaäd’s music varies wildly in style from songs that are as Indie as a pair of skinny jeans, to some vaguely dub-ish sounds, and one that reminded me of a 1970s boogaloo CD I once owned (is that an organ I detect?). To create this array of music, there seemed to be a veritable zoo of instruments. Aside from the usual guitar, drums and bass, I spotted a keyboard, a thing that you blow down with keys that I’ve forgotten the name of (think back to your childhood), and Bongos no less. In fact, it is worth trekking to see the band and paying the small sum of money purely to see the Bongos being played with great enthusiasm and perspiration.

Whilst I happen to be a fan of variety and believe that bands that are willing to experiment with their music are the ones that people will maintain interest in, I have friends who don’t so much as change the brand of their shampoo, never mind the breadth of their music taste. By including this much variety in their repertoire, Avangaäd do run the risk of alienating some of the more conservative of their Indie fans. But then maybe they don’t care about pleasing those sorts of fans – they don’t exactly seem to be scrabbling in the bottom of the barrel for people who are willing to listen.

I understand that they’re in the process of recording at the moment, and as a result if you try looking them up on myspace you’ll find not a lot there – as I discovered disappointingly. Similarly, their own site seems to redirect you to their myspace page. Therefore, my advice to you is to check out the list of gigs on their myspace and listen in person – my experience is that they sound best live anyway.

Megan is an Occupational Therapist, originally from rural Shropshire, but now working in Manchester. She enjoys stories about peoples' relationships, and stories with a bit of a dark side. She gets many of her ideas from loitering around the centre of her hometown, where there seems to be a disproportionately high number of three legged aliens and other disturbingly dysfunctional characters. She awaits contact from Tim Burton, asking her to script his latest film. To read 2 short stories by Megan on the Showcase section of this site, click here.

© 2007 Laura Hird All rights reserved.