We Start Fires, Cosy Cosy and Slowdrowned, Cambridge Portland Arms,
16/11/2002

By someone or other.

Slowdrowned get better every time I see them. They always had a captivating, almost hypnotic quality to their music but now the songs seem to have been
streamlined and their impact has become more instant while remaining edgy
and memorable. The whole set's become more hard-hitting and powerful, but
there's still a delicacy and thoughtfulness to it. The clear-cut, almost
detached guitar over strong bass-lines sounds slightly other-worldly and it
gets inside your head very effectively - it's the kind of music that will
re-surface in your mind a week or so after the first hearing and drive you
mad trying to remember where you heard it.

Cosy Cosy then treated us to their brand of bouncy bangy pop-y stuff with
girl/boy vocals alternating between tuneful and shouty. They were tangibly
nervous, which was totally unnecessary and a pity as it didn't feel like
they were quite able to throw themselves into the set and it feels like
music that's meant to be enjoyed as you play it, the kind of catchy noise
which just cries for everyone to sing along with the chorus and jump about.
Their music almost sounds like it's smiling, the sort of thing which
everyone cheers when it comes on in a club 'cause it's so damn easy to dance
to and it's purely and simply fun.

And finally We Start Fires, who I'd been looking forward to for MONTHS and
who didn't disappoint. Insistent, biting-yet-tuneful pop with an edge to it,
gorgeous vocal harmonies and ace keyboards which manage to completely avoid
sounding cheesy. The mood veers through gentle and reflective to compulsive
grin-inducing, all of it intelligent, brimming with a lust for life and
inherently danceable. They just rock, really. You can tell they love what
they're doing and that they're rejoicing in every minute spent on stage, and
the attitude's infectious. In short, We Start Fires are absolutely amazing
and truly deserve to make it big - go forth now, see them live, buy their ep
and make them famous.