I’ve always had a problem with seeing C86 band revivals. They’re usually pretty underwhelming. Thankfully though, this was different, and quite enjoyable – although probably not worth the £10 price tag.

Edinburgh School for the Deaf were supporting. I’d been told they were ‘quite indiepop like’ from a friend. Apparently that means they’re shoegaze. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing: I like shoegaze. It just would have been nice to prepare my ears. They were quite loud. There were some great, emotive blares. Each song was better than the last – from underwhelming, to alright, to genuinely great. They have somewhat of a post-rock influence hidden in there, with an emphasis on structure and crescendos, but with dreamy, unintelligible female vocals. Again, drawing on shoegaze, using it as an emotive instrument and not depending upon lyrics (Loveless style).

That said, the guitarists need to stop taking coke or something, because they appeared to unable to act like normal human beings. The bassist was constantly swaying and walking to and fro an entire part of the stage. Trying to put your bass guitar over one of the overhead rails? Seriously? It made me cringe, and even though the music by that point was great, it made me want to hate their music. The drummer, for the last song, came down into the front of the crowd and unleashed hell on a single drum he’d set up (see above), breaking the drumsticks spectacularly in the process. Musically, it was actually really effective, building to an awesome climax. Made me feel like I was a hipster and watching Gay Against You, though.

The Jasmine Minks were then ready to take the stage. Being a c86 era band, I’m ambivalent. Of course, I love c86 music. But seeing it revived is sometimes a painful process. They are definitely shambolic. That’s part of their charm. But it means that the experience can come off as shoddy, old and cheap. I’ve had some bad experiences with c86 revival bands recently – 14 Iced Bears are doing the rounds recently, I saw them supporting both The Pains of Being Pure at Heart and Allo Darlin’. I did not enjoy them. 14 Iced Bears are not terrible in small doses. But I could not stand listening through an entire set (sorry chaps). I also saw Mighty Mighty at Indietracks 2009, and would say it’s one of the most underwhelming sets I’ve seen in a long time. As for The Woodentops supporting Belle & Sebastian – blargh. Just mediocre and embarrassing. (on a bright note, I was very impressed with The Pastels doing a tour with Tenniscoats, and The Pooh Sticks were excellent at Indietracks 2010).

So, you can appreciate my mixed expectations. I’ve been burned badly a few times. With 14 Iced Bears, I blame it on a lack of knowledge of their songs. The Woodentops generally had awful sound balancing, as hits like Move Me need a bit of punch. Given how good the sound had been for ESFTD, and I really like a solid 2-3 of The Jasmine Minks songs, I’m sure I could find something to enjoy in theirs. And I did! Whilst definitely not one of the best gigs I’ve been to this year, they managed to recapture some of their former glory. The start of the set was a little duff, but for the hits they brought on an extra guitarist (with a formidable moustache – we all know how important this is), which really helped add some oomf. Cold Hands, Warm Heart sounded great, as did Cut Me Deep, probably their most well-known song. I’d have to say the standout song was Think!, though – not only a personal favourite, but the bass and guitar sounded just right. And despite the fact the bassist looks a lot like Vince Cable (see picture), the song shows he has a great amount of talent. I’m not sure that those songs really made up for £10 worth of ticket, but it’s reassuring that some c86 bands have something left in them.