Brian Jonestown Massacre

Last night, Nasa nightclub was celebrating the midweek weekend with an orgy of loud live music, played out to a comfortably large audience of appreciative connoisseurs - and some journalists too.

Jakobinarina were followed by Singapore Sling were followed by The Brian Jonestown Massacre. All were on form, all were very different to each other and all added an important element to the evening as a whole.

Jakobinarina were up first, playing to a crowd that hadn't all arrived yet - which was a shame, because they're damn good. These young guys belt out a sound you'd expect from a band much older. Their hard rock approach to indie is refreshing, and Gunnar's voice very convincingly carries off both heavy metal screaming and indie kid crooning.

At a very different point on the spectrum, Singapore Sling graced the stage next. Their sound is smooth, drone, silky - but still deliberately rough round the edges. Their live set sounds much like their CDs do, not because they try too hard to make the live sound studio-perfect - but because they are a live band who try to capture the atmosphere on disc. As a result, you have to see Singapore Sling live if you wish to truly understand Singapore Sling.

The six-piece always play music in their unmistakable style - deliberate and solid, but they manage to make songs that very obviously nod to metal or ska, without actually being them. They are an interesting band and last night - I'm sure they would agree - they played a good show.

Finally, the headline act: The Brian Jonestown Massacre - American cult favourites and inspiration to other bands like The Dandy Warhols and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. To try to describe their music is both difficult and easy. Difficult because there are not many other bands they are obviously influenced by, but easy because there is definitely something 70s in there, and something San Francisco and also something British too - not least from the vocals.

While Anton Newcombe is indeed American, his singing voice has a noticeable north-of-England-ness to it. Among the four (I think) guitars onstage, one was a twelve-string. This makes for a very rich sound to layer the keyboard, drums and tambourine onto. The tambourine player has the stage presence and personality of most bands' lead singers, with his quirky enthusiasm and big black beard. He looks a lot like a camp imam.

BJTM's high energy music is played with such effortless cool that their live show is a memorable experience that you really should check out if you haven't done so already.

Alex Elliott