Sic Alps & Milk Maid, The Castle, Manchester 23rd August 2011...
I felt a bit out of place at The Castle on Tuesday because I forgot to wear a beard like the rest of the men in there. The view that Sic Alps must have had form the stage would have been very much like my picture above.
Before any of you blokes of a hirsute persuasion track me down to rub your facial hair on my naked skin and cause a minor irritating rash, be aware that this is not a beard-bashing review, just an observation.Anyway.Sic Alps are unashamedly lo-fi garage rock but in an almost delicate way, sometimes songs seem on the verge of falling apart before being brought back together by a beautiful hook. The trouble for me was it was all a bit samey. One nice enough song finished, people clapped politely, and then another one that sounded nearly identical started. I enjoyed myself, don’t doubt that, but I left wishing there had been a bit more variation. I’m a hard man to please sometimes.Band of the night for me was Milk Maid, who seem to get better each time I see them. And they’ve got a bearded member, so ner. There were two other bands on, Peacesigns who I missed because I was drinking beer somewhere else, and Former Bullies, who I missed because I was drinking beer in the front room of the Castle. See a pattern forming here? At least I’m admitting it instead of making up a review of bands I didn’t see.And I’ll do a better picture next time. I promise.
Sic Alps websiteMilk Maid myspace
