Pop review: Toxic sound assault
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Your support makes all the difference.The Lo-Fidelity Allstars may be tipped as the next big thing, but pundits are at a loss as to how to categorise them. The band have come up with the term punk paste, and Tim Perry tries to find out exactly what that means
After just two singles, backed up by seemingly constant live gigs and DJ sets, the Lo-Fidelity Allstars (above) have spawned acres of ecstatic press coverage. The mavericks of the acclaimed Skint "Big Beat" label are very hotly tipped for the big time next year, even though no one seems able to fully describe their aural assault.
To help us along, they have made up the term "punk paste". Wrecked Train Dave and Albino Priest Phil, the outfit's vocalist and programmer respectively, try to define that term further as they sit in their Brighton studio. They are the worse for wear after a late night drinking and working on their debut album, due out in March.
"We said it would be a toxic, dangerous substance, but would be addictive and you'd love it. We say it tastes like humus and looks like that green stuff you wash your hands in," proclaims Phil. "Yeah Swarfega," interjects Dave. "It's highly dangerous. But the album is going to surprise a lot of people. Many think we're Big Beat but they're gonna have to change their opinions a bit as it's not all full-on dance. There's going to be a lot of mad stuff such as mad guitar feedback over real mad Sixties soul, and slower stuff too.
"We've been compared to many bands [the list includes Happy Mondays, Renegade Soundwave and Flowered Up]. Most of them are ones that we're into, so it's probably a compliment more than anything. But I'm sure people are pretty much confused by it all - if you can't categorise it properly, it can only be a good thing, really."
Another area where the Lo-Fidelity Allstars blur the divisions is between clubbing and gigging. Besides a national tour, members of the band also top the bill at many clubs. "It's not something we set out to do, but we do have different musical backgrounds and a couple of us set out originally as DJs," explains Dave. "Some of us are into rock and some into dance, so it's a real mixture. The next tour should be a real mix where we might play a club at 2am one night and then be on stage at 10pm in an indie venue the next. It's good to spread it out to both the people into the house versions of our tunes and the others who are into the raucous, full-on rock tunes. We want to get across to everybody."
"It'll be great to round off the year at the Hanover Grand," adds Phil. "Midfield General [another name on the Skint roster] is DJing, so it'll be just like a good club night with us coming on about one in the morning. Then we're off to New York about six hours later. It's all been a bit mad this year. It's great."
Lo-Fidelity Allstars play the Hanover Grand, 6 Hanover St, W1 (0171- 499 7977) 12 Dec
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