Saturday 05/04/08 Rosalita @ Bedford Esquires

Rosalita, curiously only second on the bill tonight, have a certain swagger about them. It perhaps borders on extreme exuberance, but with the type of music they play it’s absolutely necessary; no half measures here. Strutting out onto the stage there are some definite fashion statements being made. The bassist has a haircut that is Spinal Tap-esque, though it somehow doesn’t look that bad. Lead singer Kris Andrew also has a certain style about him; the combination of a trench coat, neck scarf and bright sunglasses is a very distinctive look for sure, though perhaps not entirely suitable attire for whole set on the tiny Esquires stage.

Rosalita show tinges of Madness and more than just a hint of the Dead 60s’ Riot Radio in their sound.  There’s a snare happy sticksman and an irritating 80s Eurosynth keyboard, to boot. Racing through ‘Manga Girl’, which includes some absolutely manic screeches ("Ya ya ya ya ya HEY!"), and single ‘What Would Your Mother Say’ Rosalita successfully tempt the crowd into swapping restrained foot tapping and head bobbing for some actual dancing.

The trench coat unsurprisingly disappears after the first few songs but the sunglasses remain and, unfortunately, so does the keyboard, which becomes so prominent it leaves me feeling as though I’ve fallen into an 1980s arcade game. In some songs it’s just about tolerable, but in others, such as 'If You Can’t Dance' it just feels tacky and unnecessary. ‘Way Past Bedtime’ is also in severe danger of turning into a synth-odyssey, though thankfully it falls short. Despite all of that, the set progresses with vim and vigour, with the actions of both the band and crowd become gradually more exaggerated and energetic.

After some slightly less keyboard-laden tracks, such as ‘AWOL Sean’, the set ends on an a tribute to Neil Buchanan with the anthemic bass led romp that is 'Art Attack', which leaves the mob at the front utterly unable to resist leaping about like only 15 year old indie-kids can. The keyboard may be ridiculous, likewise the haircuts, but Rosalita are garish, outlandish, and, keyboard aside, a lot of fun.