Ooooh, you can literally smell the anticipation in the air at tonight’s Franklin Rock ‘n’ Roll Club. It’s busy and hot; with bearded men in Bonnevilles t-shirts and pretty high-heeled ladies in attendance. What does anticipation smell like, I hear you ask? Tonight it’s definitely Hai Karate mixed with cheap booze.  

Which conveniently leads us nicely onto the first act: Grrrrrrrrrrrrr... It’s The Brutes! And, never has a name been more apt for a band of this ilk. The last time I saw them play was at this very same venue supporting Les Grys Grys back in September (read about that epic show here). They have it all. As I previously stated, it’s the stuff Pebbles comps are made of. Fast, fun, cheeky and just tight enough to produce that nonchalant garage-punk sound. Breezing through tracks like ‘Good Times’, ‘Knock Me Out’, favourite ‘Whaddya Want?’ and cool covers like The Electric Prunes’ ‘Never Had It Better’ and garage grrr-owler ‘Hang Up’ by The Wailers - top screaming from Beauregarde. Shout out to Heinrich Mitt-Schticks on thumping, as he pounds his way through the whole set without breaking into a metaphorical sweat. 

Whilst we catch our breath, and make a quick dash to the bar, time for step-in Jim to don his DJ hat and spin a few disks. Then on with the show...

‘We’re Geek Maggot Bingo - Good Evening!!!’. Taking their name from the early '80s no-budget cult horror flick by Nick Zedd, this should give you an indication of what’s in store; and as they launch into their first number with an invitation that is hard to refuse, come ‘Join The Freaks’ with its twisted side-show style hooks. One of the things that I really like about this band is their ability to tell a story and set the scene. Engrossed. I feel like I’m right there with the tattooed lady, the pinheads and the wolf boy (some may say we really are). Acid Maggot’s dulcet tones were once likened to "a corpse being dragged across gravel", which is a fair compliment; but there is much more; reminiscent at times of Lux Interior, The Legendary Stardust Cowboy, Hasil Adkins, M. Valdemar (go Google it), and even the deep hypnotic broodiness of Rev. Horton Heat. With one foot firmly wedged in '50s riffs, the other in '60s garage, and a wicked eye quietly observing the crowd. Other notable numbers are fuzzed-out ‘I Saw What You Did’; the instant paranoia of ‘Laughing At You’, and we are duly warned about strange noises we may hear on the way home in ‘Ghoul In The Graveyard’. An extra helping of fuzz with ‘High Time’ which is proper Watusi-able. Wrapping up the set with the excellent 'Swingtown'. Time for an encore? Wait, they aren't the headlining band. Next time, next time.          

The Brutes and Geek Maggot Bingo are in many ways like two bookends, and share a lot of common ground. However, they each have their very own unique way of expressing it. I’m sure I’m not alone in hoping to see both bands on the bill at Franklin Fest 2016, and certainly headlining their own shows soon.  

Speaking of headliners ... enter Garage Punk Blues™ magoos - The Bonnevilles. The two lads from Northern Ireland kick off with ‘Good Suits And Fightin’ Boots’ - popular with the crowd and possibly one of their best known. It's only seconds before you realise that, for a duo, they have more presence than most bands with double or triple the amount of people and equipment. It's an intimate affair between the crowd and band, as singer/guitarist Andy McGibbon beckons us all to come closer. Phew, it's getting hotter. (I'm now starting to regret my decision to wear a crimplene dress). McGibbon goes through not two, but three guitar changes during the long set - I wish I knew about the technicalities of guitars to list them all, but I don’t. All credit to them; they don't bat an eyelid when fallen upon by a drunken punter. They throw in a corking rendition of R.L. Burnside's 'Poor Boy' then slow the pace (for 5 mins anyway) with twiddle-y number 'I've Come Too Far For Love To Die'. McGibbon asks "has anyone ever had a broken heart?", cue a Mexican wave of nodding heads. McGibbon has, that’s for sure. He's reliving every moment right here, and in every bead of sweat. Both he and drummer Chris McMullen certainly put their all into their performance. McGibbon comments later on about the lack of dancing, which is instantly rectified. Towards the end I can't actually see the band at all, save for the curly-wurly head of McMullen bouncing up and down - he's that tall, even when sitting down! He plays the drums like he's on a buckaroo. It's been well over an hour and they show no signs of wrapping up the set, but when they finally do it's probably the longest encore ever, and then some. They are certainly giving the fans their money's worth. During one of the encores, they debut a couple of new songs, one of which 'The Whisky Lingers’ sees McGibbon proclaim "I don't want to be skinny anyway", above lots of feedback. Before they take their leave they express their thanks to the other bands and the organisers for a top evening.

At the risk of repeating myself, it’s been another fabulous night, at the cricket shack of delight that is The Franklin.

If you want to hear more about The Bonnevilles, I caught up with Andy McGibbon before they headed out on tour, click here for that.        

And, If you're not totally worn out by all of that excitement, the next Franklin Rock 'n' Roll Club takes place on Friday 18^thDecember - hosting old favourites The Wildebeests, and the anticipated return of The No-Things, click here for more info. 

The Brutes, a ‘high-octane’ (by their own correct description) '60s-influenced garage punk band from Glasgow are the first up on tonight’s very exciting bill at The Franklin Rock 'N' Roll Club. They set the tone with their first number ‘Caveman Stomp’. Tonight is gonna be fun, fast, furious and in your face! ‘Trouble’ and ‘Real Gone Gasser’ follow in a similar vein; they could have been lifting these songs straight from a Pebbles comp. However, citing The Troggs as one of their biggest influences, singer Jim Spence asks "any Trogglodytes in the audience?" The response is a bit like tumbleweed blowing through a desert landscape. Undeterred, they knock out a stompy ‘Strange Movies’ by the very same. Finishing up with Wailers snotty '60s mover ‘Hang Up’ and an accelerated cover of ‘Shot Down’ by garage gods, The Sonics.

This is the third time I’ve seen The No-Things play over the past 12 months, and every time I see them I’m impressed by their improvement. I like them a lot; they tick all of the '60s garage influenced boxes for me. Laurent Mombet, also of Les Bof, is a natural front man, and he’s not afraid to show it; wearing his influences firmly on his striped t-shirt sleeve, and with an attitude to match. They describe themselves as ‘low-fi and quite primitive’, which is all true, but there is so much more to them. Dare I say it, some of their songs are downright catchy, and it’s pretty impossible to resist the urge to dance. In fact, the crowd and I are not resisting as they open with ‘The Birds’, just in case you were expecting anything less than snarly. Call and response ’Who Did You Rob, Bob’ with its 1-2-5 harmonica (I misquoted this song title in a previous review, apologies) goes down a bomb, and who did Bob rob? I’m curious. ‘Losin’ My Mind’ is another low-down dirty snarly punk number ‘’I don’t need anyone’’ shouts Laurent gesticulating, this song, reminiscent in parts, to The Sparkles' ‘You Ain’t No Friend Of Mine’. This is an intense performance, and one of the best things about the Franklin is that the stage is at the same level as the crowd, and sometimes there isn’t much of a distinction between band and crowd (why aren’t all gigs like this?). ‘Diamond Ring’ is a rendition of displeasure, chewed up and spat! They finish with ‘Don’t Get On My Tits’ well, okay, we won’t. We have been warned.  

With much anticipation we turn to tonight's headliners, Les Grys Grys. With a couple of 7" releases under their belts on State and Dirty Water respectively, these 5 wild young musicians from France appear to be the darlings of the '60s scene just now. Heavily influenced by '60s r'n'b / beat and garage, with a downright durty harmonica sound, I was wondering how much of this was hype, but (thankfully) decided to bracket my judgements. People who had seen them play at McChuills in Glasgow the previous night had travelled through to Edinburgh to see them play again. Within the first 3 opening bars (as I scraped my brain from the back wall) I fully understood why. No pleasantries here, just straight into a full-on cover of 'Milk Cow Blues'. Clealry taking their influences from bands like The Outsiders, Pretty Things and Downliners Sect, to name but a few. Their version of 'At the River’s Edge’ (New Colony Six) is thumping and driving, and without pause we're onto Nederbeat with ‘You Mistreat Me’. Could this be The Outsiders? Is this what it was really like to see a band in ‘65? I convince myself for a moment that it must have been. They barely come up for air throughout the whole performance, and are not afraid to get sweaty. ‘Got Love’ (totally goosebumpy), ‘Tiger In Your Tank’, and ‘Roadrunner’ are all performed with authentic reproduction, energy and raw passion. I look around and I can't see anyone in the crowd that doesn't have a grin from ear to ear, it is completely intoxicating. They are also not afraid to get amongst the crowd, standing on seats and tables, and did I imagine this or was the guitarist playing his guitar with a drum stick? As the set draws to a close (sadly it has to end, they must surely be exhausted by now!), we are treated to some real rock and roll maraca smashing action! If you get the chance, go see them play.

Thanks to the organisers, this has been another fabulous night at the Franklin Rock 'N' Roll Club.