The night kicked off with Hull's finest, The Paddingtons, immediately grabbing the attention of everyone in the place. They rapidly changed what had previously been a pretty laid-back atmosphere into an exciting frenzy with their bouncy and loud, if sometimes a little crazed, guitar sound. With no trace of the delightful Hull accent, which I'd grown to know and love after spending three years at university there, and no sign of marmalade or duffle coats either, they played a six-song set with much guitar, a lot of attitude and some great rocking tunes. Nice! Agent Blue Next up were Agent Blue, another five-piece band, this time from Stoke. The punky, indie rockers played a fast-paced, vigarous set which had a punchy edge to it, heavy on the guitar and shouty. Having grown considerably in number, the crowd started to leap about by the second track in. Yes, the moshing had begun! More than once, Nic, on vocals, leaped off the stage, joining in and performing the song amidst the crowd. Giving it his all, and chain-smoking throughout, Nic looked completely at ease on stage, like he was born to do exactly this. Yes, the night was starting to warm up just nicely. Finally, the band that everyone had been waiting for took to the stage. As soon as they did, a huge crowd of people seemed to come out of nowhere and the first few opening notes had everyone leaping about in a mad chaotic frenzy. Mosh-tastic. Even frontman Dominic Masters started off the set by jumping up and down like Zebedee from the Magic Roundabout. Screechy guitars, screaming vocals, and catchy guitar riffs, made for some cracking good tunes. Dedicating the band's second release, Stan Bowles, to the late John Peel - which met with much approval from the crowd - Dominic continued to leap, twist, jump and writhe about on stage. | "The Others are an atmospheric and passionate band who are going to get bigger and better" | |
Standing there in his own band t-shirt and jeans (which, he assured me in a recent interview, is what he wears at every gig), he looked thin and a bit frail. Although he didn't look like he could rock the whole joint, he proceeded to do just that. Intense and captivating, there's a passionate, alluring energy surrounding Dominic Masters, which lifts you up and pulls you right into the emotional heart of his songs. Pretty powerful stuff. His shout-out of "nice one Taunton, I'm from Wells; it's nice coming home" only endeared him further to the crowd. Sweet. The end Ending an explosive set with This is for the Poor, their last song met with a huge roar from the crowd. From the first alternating guitar notes this song just gets more insistent throughout as the drums and bass work in tandem driving and propelling the whole track forward, with Dominic screaming "this is for the poor, not you rich kids" over the top. All in all, this was a darn good night, and The Others are a bloody good band. If I'm honest, I'm a bit disappointed that there weren't any crowd-surfing antics or mass stage invasions, but then, I guess, all the leaping and moshing from the crowd, as well as from Dominic, made up for it. Truly impressive, I think, The Others are an atmospheric and passionate band who are going to get bigger and better, whilst continuing to grow in stature and recognition. These boys are gonna go far. Wanna see more? You can see photos from the gig and read an interview with Dominic Masters by clicking on the links at the top of the page. | 
