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Every month, the Belmont Arts Centre in Shrewsbury plays host to Unplugged Live, a showcase for local bands and singer songwriters. Despite the title, many of the bands are at least partly plugged-up. The night also gives a platform to budding VJs and DJs.

Chris Wallbank And The Cowards

Unplugged - September 2007

First up was a stripped-down version of indie band Chris Wallbank And The Cowards (ie the regular line-up, minus the drummer). The first thing I noticed about them was the fact that they've opted for a keyboard player instead of a bassist means that they have a different sound from many indie bands, making quite a refreshing change. It also allows for a rather apt brass accompaniment for The Cowards Are Going To War.

Another thing that makes them a bit special is the slightly folky sound they have on certain tracks, such as Hand Me Down My Bible. But the best part of their set was the closing song, Ballad, the lyrics of which tell a bizarre tale involving the Queen, the devil, and how The Cowards attempted to take over the country.

Next, it was the turn of The Greens to showcase their chilled-out acoustic works. With two members on acoustic guitars throughout the set and a third switching between piano and guitar, you might expect them to be 'just another acoustic band'.

The Greens

However, songs like Bricks and Mortar are reminiscent of The Man Who era Travis (which is fairly impressive in itself), and I was pretty stunned by just how good the vocals were. All three guys joined in to create some of the best male harmonies I've heard. Umm, ever, really.

Third was the rather bizarrely titled Cataclysmic Engine Malfunction, or Jay, as he is apparently also known. The guy himself has that irritating habit of refusing to tell anyone the names of any of his songs, so I can't really say which ones were the best.

However, there's no doubt he's a talented guitarist with quite a lovely voice - it's a bit like a Damien Rice voice, but with guitars that sound like how I imagine Jack Johnson might if he had grown up in a (sometimes fairly depressing) commune rather than in Hawaii.

Headlining that night were Bishop's Castle three-piece, Cynical Pinnacle. I'd describe it as part ska, part tangent, as you got the impression that the some of the lyrics weren't written as parts of songs, but were random wanderings of someone's mind that had been copied down and handed to the singer as a lyric sheet.

It was highly entertaining though, and it made me wish some of the instrumentals had been given the same treatment. I wanted to hear more about that guy at school who annoyed them, and about why they think There's Something Wrong With The World. I was also very impressed by just how many cymbals the drummer had. All in all, quite a good way to finish off quite a good night.