Winter Warmer

Jericho Tavern,

Oxford

13-14/12/08

 

Now four years old, the weekend-long Winter Warmer is testament to the state of the burgeoning

Oxford music scene. The mid-afternoon slot on the first day of the event – organised by city promoters Coo Coo Club with Gappy Tooth Industries and Swiss Concrete – offers a taster.

 

Bearlike James Hitchman, mastermind behind day-glo bright synth-pop creators Alphabet Backwards flies solo, performing acoustic versions of his band’s ditties. Singing about everything from global warming on Polar Bears to the bizarre chants of ‘na na na’ on ‘80s Pop Video’, James is an undeniable talent. His performance is like a body missing a vital organ though as the pared-down tunes whose strength is usually in their uplifting melodies sound almost melancholic.

 

There’s nothing low-key about the monstrous Americanised riffs of growling rock outfit I Am Thieves who, though small in number, make a large impression with their ballsy rock in the style of Queens Of The Stone Age. The singer’s simile of their performance after Hitchman’s subdued acoustic set being like a punch in the face after a tickle is spot on. The Gullivers meanwhile, have jetted a universe away from their punk beginnings and found their niche in their more recent shoegazerish sound reminiscent of fellow Oxfordians Ride coupled with an art-rock Talking Heads-esque leaning. The smooth warblings of new keyboardist Sophie McGrath provide the perfect foil to vocalist Andrew Byrne’s raw, nasal wails – reminiscent of Talking Heads’ David Byrne’s peculiar vocals. Shimmering and soaring delayed guitars interlock with foreboding, looming basslines and booming drums – paradoxically casting darkness and light in equal measures.

 

Shifting the dial, Sketchbeat tap into a rich hedonistic funky cod-reggae sound with groovy basslines and sassy horn-playing.

 

It’s cold outside but with acts like this blessing us with music it’s no wonder the Winter Warmer cannot fail to toast the cockles of our heart.

 

Joby Mullens