CLOWNS - THE FREEBUTT, BRIGHTON, 4/11.08

Are you afraid of clowns?

If you’re going to form a band comprised of members of Electric Soft Parade, The Poppycocks, Brakes and Restlesslist then you’d be right to expect some surprises along the way.

A four-piece going by the name Clowns, tonight they make their live debut in typically unpredictable fashion. Decked out in creepy clown attire (you get the immediate impression that they would have been kicked out of the circus for scaring the children) they launch straight into what is sure to become the bands calling card ‘We Are The Clowns’ while front-man Miles stalks the stage, lost in the songs and his own musical world.

Guitarist Clangers scuzzy, garage rock riffs are a prominent feature throughout, especially in standout tracks such as ‘Trousers’ and the crazed, lurching ‘Terror In The Big Top’. Built on the solid foundations of Matt Thwaites’ bass playing and Thomas Whites drumming, Miles delivers his often sinister and peculiar tales.

Musically it’s a mind bending concoction - twisted and slightly disturbing yet darkly playful, managing to combine the rockabilly swagger of Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster with the pop sensibilities of early Squeeze, all underlined by frenzied Fugazi-esque guitar attacks. This proves to be one of their greatest strengths, combining such disparate sounds to create something truly cohesive and wholly unique.

Finally ‘She Says I’m A Clown’ brings things to a perfect conclusion, building to a climatic sprawling whirlwind of sound with all four band members chanting the repeated chorus. It’s fair to say that no-one else is making the sounds of Clowns at the moment – its primal, raw, rocking and ever so slightly fucked up. And all the better for it.

www.myspace.com/shesaysimaclown

Ian Chambers, Nov '08