Junkstar @ Flowerpot Camden February 2010


I had no expectations when I arrived at Flowerpot in Camden last Friday and saw with no sense of great expectation that Junkstar were playing. I had headed over to meet up with Clara V. from Vaqueros Paganos and her husband Maca, who were in London for a few days before heading back to Argentina. I hope you had a great birthday Clara. I must make more friends from Argentina a round for five people including myself included just two alcoholic drinks, I digress…

Junkstar, a South London five piece band are not unknown and their fanbase is determined to enjoy a night out with the band. A dancing duo were in full flow immediately the first chords of the appropriately named This could be the Start of Something hit the venue, a fast paced crowd pleaser.  The band worked well off each other as they wound themselves up to full pace.

Junkstar

Junkstar

A slower 70’s sounding electronic number, Bluebottles followed the intro and the juxtaposition of the two musical styles sitting next to each other made me interested to see how the set was going to pan out.

Rage of the pin ups
, my personal selection from the set, has Junkstar adding some real depth to their music, as guitars switch between the increasingly popular Sergio Leone effect, to a rock saw style, an incessant drum and bass pulling the whole piece forward with a sense of urgency and some great keyboard which adds an extra twist of flavour.

Amy should by rights have been my pick of the night, with it’s pared back rock and drum which reminded me in the deepest recesses of my mind with Party in Paris by the UK Subs and it is superbly counter-balanced with the keyboard electronica which is core to the band.

The set went with no hitch, other than the inevitable Flowerpot pole, which caused JC a problem he successfully negotiated, not easy for a left-handed guitarist at that venue and very quickly the seven songs were over.

I look forward to catching more of Junkstar, as their music cleverly straddles both trippy electro-pop and the far more emotional depth of some superb interplay.

Anna, who I met briefly afterwards, kindly let me have a copy of their 7″ vinyl release of Magazine along with the CD, but being the thoughtful soul I am, I let Clara take that back to Argentina, sorry Anna, I promise I will be more careful next time.

Should you go and see Junkstar? Well if you don’t you will be missing a great evening of entertainment, which you can either take at a superficial level and just enjoy some superb beats, or engage with as a group of serious musicians who have something to add to the world of music.

Next time I get to see Junkstar, I hope to be able to catch up with them for more than a minute.

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Comments

2 Responses to “Junkstar @ Flowerpot Camden February 2010”
  1. Sarah says:

    Junkstar were a sick band to watch,yesyesyes and navigated the venue very well considering it resembles an obstacle courss. I loved sound ofthecity song and startof siomething the best relly hot tunes. Sarah

    • Tim says:

      Agree with the addition of Sound of the City, it works really well.

      Half the fun of Flowerpot is that stage, great venue and long may it stay open.

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