THE PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA / YOURCODENAMEIS:MILO
THE ASTORIA, LONDON
03/03/05

I don't think I've been quite this excited in a long time, the prospect of seeing one of my adolescent heroes and the only new band that really means something to me on the same night, well ladies and gentlemen, it's been emotional!

The Astoria has never been this rammed before, the cloak room has to shut before the support band have even finished their set as they're full to the brim. The back of the hall near the main entrance and bars is like a sauna, bodies crushed against bodies, people sliding past each other just to get through the tiny gaps dotted around the venue. The moment you enter, as clichéd as this sounds, you feel the excitement instantly.

Yourcodenameis:milo are riding a huge tsunami-sized-buzz-like-hype-crest-mountain-giraffe-wave at the moment! It's totally justified of course, which makes some people sick. Just one mini-album into their career, seemingly coming from nowhere (well, Newcastle) and everyone seems to have an opinion about them, and most of those are ones of adulation and sometimes, even lust! People seem more to struggle over a singular idea of what or who they sound like, there's emo, alternative, even dance like influences in there-but to actually name a band seems to stump people. I have the answer of course, and I feel incredibly proud of myself! The now defunct rockers Cable share the exact same ability to make songs that move you without having any actual emotions included. The set is tight, and snippets from their upcoming album "Ignoto" say all that's needed to be said about this band, they are the next band who should mean something to you!

After such a set, a ripple of fear travels throughout the venue, how the hell can a band who imploded so many years ago match such a performance? Well time's not only a healer, it's also a bloody good memory wiper! The hits man, it's all about the hits! Ambling onstage, it's as if time has frozen… two string bass? Check! 3 string guitar *squints*… can't quite tell! Drum with lots of little cymbals? Check! Big Guy on drums? Check! Skeleton fronting the band? Check! And so it begins, a set full of hits you can't forget, and some you needed gentle prodding to remember, they're all here; "Peaches", "Mach 5", "Lump", "Boll Weevil", "We Are Not Gonna Make It" etc. The way the band perform is nothing short of explosive, like an alternative rock Vegas bar band, they throw in funny covers throughout the set (The Ramones' "I Wanna Be Sedated", The Spice Girls' "Wannabe", Stevie Wonders' "Superstition", The Human Leagues' "Don't You Want Me Baby" to name but a few) entertain and involve the audience into proceedings and at one point huddle up in a corner, with the drummer banging his sticks on the stage floor as rhythmical accompaniment with the other two bringing the song down to an intensely quiet moment, then exploding off again…

This has been a show I'll never forget, and if they don't come back again, I will kill them!

By Jeremy Chick
www.subba-cultcha.com