Friday 20/01/06 Doloroso, Arrowbound @ Tunnels, Aberdeen

2006 may be the year of the monkey, yet the strength and depth of British guitar music has reached an unprecedented level. From some quarters 2005 is unfairly tainted with the names of Messrs Blunt, Frog and Christie, but the reality is an explosion of talent from across the nation. Doloroso find themselves in a world where competition is fierce and it takes something pretty darn special to stand out.

Playing to a sparse crowd can’t be fun at the best of times but this lukewarm gathering was further cooled by the sub-Keane support Arrowbound. All emotional pianos and vocals without any strong songs to underpin the combination left an audience flatter than week old lemonade.

Doloroso appear on stage as if they’ve time travelled from the 1950’s with a demure style all grey tank tops and dour shirts. Frontman Chris Wilde looks like Billy Elliot might if he’d hosed two bottles of Jack Daniels the previous night.  The band launch into the quirky, catchy ‘Copycat Code’ complete with a dancefloor bassline and abstract vocals. The addictive ‘Radio Silence’ is the cream of tonight’s crop of haunting gems with its hypnotic keyboard riff. This is cerebral music; it scares and soothes in equal amounts: listening at home relaxing with a glass of wine, but maybe fails to impact fully in the live environment.

This East London fivepiece do possess genuine ability and charm, however it’s questionable as to whether there’s enough musical individuality or commercial appeal for a Doloroso crossover into the mainstream. Perhaps they’re destined for cult status; not always a bad thing. The new album will be keenly anticipated, with early indications pointing towards something just a little bit special.