Thursday 10/11/05 Dawn Of The Replicants, Rising Times @ The Borderline, London

Arriving onstage with an invitingly shimmering opening, Rising Times suggest all manner of possibilities. 'SS2' contains enough searing, prog-inspired guitar work to suggest we might even be in the midst of Ultrasound revivalists. Unfortunately, for all their admirable invention with sound and the general excellence of the four-piece’s performance, their core material is a big let down. 'Bullet Proof Vest' sounds like a mediocre U2 song being played by more interesting, creative musicians.  Hang on, that’s how all these songs sound and the singer’s attempts at enigmatic posturing are pure Bono-lite. Nitpicking, perhaps, as Rising Times are brimful of ambition and ideas, look the part and can certainly play.  They just need some decent songs.

It’s fair to say that Dawn of the Replicants are unconventional.  They arrive on stage looking like five Scottish truck drivers on a jolly, and are met by a not-dissimilar looking crowd of devotees.  New song 'Little Driver' suggests the Replicants have added a funky element to their unusual cocktail of murky, swampy folk-pop.  'No Room at the Inn', too, is relentlessly jaunty, building to a suitably loud, shouty chorus.

Singer Paul Vickers is his usual clumsily charming self, donning a home-made bug-eyed hood for 'Oh Bumblebee', claiming mystical predictive powers for his songs and regularly covering himself and the front row with glitter. Such tomfoolery would be enough to hold the attention on its own but in actual fact it merely complements the irresistibly twisted pop sensibility at the core of the band’s songs. Vickers himself is much more than a clown too, singing his tales of dark intrigue with surprising intensity.

As the band continue through a set of largely new material the suggestion is of a more immediate, yet still playful direction, although retaining the trademarked frowzy atmosphere of yore.  Vickers’ vocals are often backed up by all four companions belting their guts out to powerful effect – highlighting the quality of songwriting too easily overlooked in all this weirdness. There's still time to tag on some freshly tweaked old favourites, the defiant 'Science Fiction Freak' and hillbilly stomper 'Rockerfeller Center' providing a suitably raucous conclusion. 

And so they leave us again to ponder exactly the genius behind this idiosyncratic band.  Those here don’t know or care precisely what drew them in, but they’ll certainly be back for more of whatever it is next time – and that’s all that matters really.