This Bluesbunny had heard of an improvement in the quality of tap beer in Sleazys recently, and seeing as a showcase of artists competing to play at Big in Falkirk was on, it was a no-brainer. Competition ain't no crime.
First came Stutter Bunny. You can't help but enjoy their energetic indie-punk, even more so if you are a Bunny yourself. While the performance didn't go quite to plan - a snare drum issue halted the momentum - the band more than made up for that blip with songs like "Autopsy" and most notably "Psychopath Next Door". Going by this live performance, the future is bright for these young Glasgow upstarts.
It is with a tinge of confusion that I introduce the next act, the Hungry Ghosts, as the winners of "Making It 2008". These Yorkshire boys can surely command the stage, but does the music reach the same heights? Unfortunately, the answer is no. Not to say that they are musically incompetent - far from it - but their overlong indie dirges are nothing new but perhaps they will go down a storm at the Big In Falkirk festival.
The drollery continued with Must Be Something. It is again the case of a band who can act out onstage, but save for the occasional interesting riff, there was little present in this performance to suggest that they ought to be the next big thing. I'd like to think that this band will prove me wrong in time, but I don't see anything for them beyond the indie-rock periphery.
What else to wind up the show but another contemporary rock act? The Skinflints took to the stage and clearly know how to have fun. Their rampant, upbeat sound was a fine antidote to the purgatory-dwellers before them (Stutter Bunny excepted), and maybe this band will go that bit further as a result.
Ultimately, Stutter Bunny's drum woes must have cost them a golden chance to play at Big in Falkirk. Their experience shone through and had it not been for the said misfortune, I am positive that they would have got the nod. In the end, tough luck for Stutter Bunny, and best of luck to Hungry Ghosts. They might need it.