The Thrills / Simple Kid / The Ordinary Boys

Southampton Uni

18.9.03

Since the release of their debut single Santa Cruz (You're Not That Far) first time around, the American-obsessed Irish lads' rise to fame has been nothing short of meteoric. Three great singles and a critically acclaimed album later, the Thrills have succeeded into bringing their breezy, light indie-pop into the mainstream, and are on the verge of becoming massive.

First on were hotly tipped noiseniks the Ordinary Boys, a dysfunctional-looking quartet consisting of a tattooed punk, a crusty, a public school dropout and a bassist who wouldn't look out of place in Athlete. In theory, their scuzzy, punky aggro-indie shouldn't work, but it does. Marvellously.

Simple Kid's psychedelic quirkiness both enchanted and baffled the crowd in equal parts. Fan favourite Truck On and new single Drugs went down well, as did an alternate version of The Average Man.

Taking to the stage at around ten, the band dubbed as the 'Irish Beach Boys' launched straight into a fiery new song, and then followed it up with the anthem Big Sur. The band's set included almost every song from their album, as well as some new tracks, penned whilst on tour. Highlights included the gloriously melancholic Hollywood Kids, Your Love Is Like Las Vegas and in many respects the breakthrough single One Horse Town.

After a two-song encore of the 'secret' track Plans and a muscular Don't Steal Our Sun, the band were gone, off to preach their gospel to the rest of the UK. On the evidence of tonight's performance, the Thrills' fully deserve their position as one of the country's best alternative prospects.

Clive Drew