CityLife

Mongrel

I MUST confess, I knew very little about Mongrel when I agreed to review them and it wasn't until I began flicking through the press material and saw the dreaded word 'supergroup' that I suddenly had a terrible feeling that I would be spending an hour and a half in the company of a post modern version of the Travelling Wilburys - how wrong I was!

Consisting of band members from Reverend and the Makers, Babyshambles and the Arctic Monkeys (both ex and current) and ably assisted by rapper Lowkey this seems less a collaboration and more of a very welcome musical collision.

Bringing to mind the counter-culturalist ethos of decades past, Mongrel have set out to make confrontational, provocative music as statement and for the large part have succeeded.

Better Than Heavy

Finally embarking on their delayed UK tour, Mongrel are using the month of Febraury to announce their arrival, the dates also set the scene for the release of the band's long-awaited debut album 'Better than Heavy' in the beginning of March.

Held together by the prowling, intensity of 'Reverend' Jon McClure, and ably assited by lyrical dexterity of the politically charged Lowkey, the show began with a bang that never really went out and the songs dripped with an anger all too seldom seen.

Breakneck pace

Surefire hit's such as 'Julian' and 'Hit from the Morning Sun' kept the breakneck pace speeding along with each track held together by some words of wisdom from the furious Jon McClure.

The diverse backgrounds of the band members was balanced to perfection and no one sound was allowed to dominate.

Considering the broad spectrum of musical genres incorporated the switch from one style to another was made with such ease you would be forgiven for thinking this is a band with a couple of albums behind them not a band fresh out of the traps.

Whether or not Mongrel will be able to sustain the intensity that appears to bring so much to their live shows will remain to be seen and with the commitments their respective bands put them under they may find themselves the victims of their own success.

If this is the case then I advise you go and see them while you can.

This is one 'supergroup' that is certainly far greater than the sum of it's parts.

Do you agree? Have your say.

Tweet