“Any band, or should I say bands? Will struggle to follow that. In fact, I will say all bands!” (Andrew Storey on his first time of seeing Cattle & Cane)

A few Fridays ago, the 9th of July 2010 to be precise, we witnessed one of the best nights of entertainment that Middlesbrough has ever seen. Four great bands at one great venue. The Westgarth Social Club on Southfield Road is fast becoming the place to be. When The Kids are solid gold put on a night like this there is no one to equal them.

First up were Cold//Pistols. Now I have to be honest and say I’d never heard of them but after a couple of catchy tunes they started to sound like I’d known them all my life. A heady mix of The Brilliant Corners, C86, Half Man, Half Biscuit and Orange Juice made their short but impressive set a real appetiser for the nights proceedings. I will certainly seek them out again and I suggest you do the same. Their jingly jangly, hook laden indie pop will certainly grab at your heart strings. Check them out;

http://www.myspace.com/coldpistols

Next up was another band that had escaped my eager gaze until now. The absolutely fabulous The Winter Hill Transmission. Long name but don’t let that put you off. Haunting, atmospheric sounds coming from 5 shy boys from Newcastle. Tonight was only their 4 or 5 gig but you would not think it. I spoke to Ben Holland, lead singer, at the end and told him that it was very rare for a song to stick in your head after just one play. But, April Snow did just that. “Do you remember that punch drunk bumble bee?” I certainly did. I went straight to myspace the next day to find it. You can do the same….. http://www.myspace.com/thewinterhilltransmission Again, I am looking forward to seeing this band sometime soon.

Next up were our current favourites here at The Northern Line. Cattle & Cane are not so much the next big thing as THE big thing. Tonight they were like kids in a sweet shop. All excited about playing T-in-the-Park the next day. Give it a year or two and they will be one of the headliners.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/tinthepark/2010/artists/cattle_and_cane/

Have a look at how good they were at T-in-the-Park. Their haunting rendition of Sold my soul is truly majestic. Well, they were ten times better at the Westgarth. The first song, a new one to me, only involved the Hamill family members and was superb. My friend Andrew, see quote at the top of this review, was in tears!!! The rest of the set was equally as enthralling. They also had a great support. People are starting to take note. If you do one thing this summer it is to go and see Cattle & Cane. If you don’t, you may regret it for a long time.

Finally, it was the turn of Kill it Kid. See quote at the top to understand the task that they had. But, you know what. They actually made a good fist of it. I don’t usually like their mix of R’n’B, Led Zep, White Stripes etc but after a couple of songs I really started to enjoy it. The two vocals added a different dimension to proceedings. Their youthful abandon was great to behold. By the end I was thoroughlly enjoying it. Looking forward to seeing them at the Stockton Fringe Festival at the end of the month. http://www.myspace.com/killitkid

Four great bands, one great night. Those happy people at THE KIDS ARE SOLID GOLD  http://www.myspace.com/thekidsaresolidgold  have loads of great things planned over the coming months. Including follow up gigs from some of the bands on tonights bill. Starting next week at The Cumberland in Newcastle with World Atlas from Brooklyn and the wonderful Cattle & Cane from Thornaby. (Thursday 29th July) Then the following evening as part of the Stockton Fringe Festival they will be again bringing us Kill It Kid, this time with World Atlas at The Georgian Theatre. Should be two great nights. They have plenty more listed below. Also plenty more photos of tonights gig at our Facebook page; 

 http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=192666&id=153421781639&ref=mf

A big thank-you to Andy, Phil, Siobhan and Mr Callaghan for standing up and being counted. Well Done.

By peter on July 23, 2010