Face Of Cheam

Turned up early for this one as Miss Dougall was on stage at 7.45pm. Got there a bit earlier in fact and heard her sound check just before the doors opened. Being a support means there is less pressure and you could see that the band were not being rushed. This meant a much more relaxed set and I think you could see the benefit. Unfortuanately there were only twelve people had made it in the room at the start of her set, though half an hour later this had probably quadrupled. Excellent as always and this being the fourth time I've seen her this year I can now sing along a bit which is always good.
The main support was a bloke called Rob Jones under a psydenym, Voluntary Butler Scheme. He was on his own with keyboards which he programmed into a loop and was fairly boring and slow. He did try a Kazoo on one song and had an obssession with ghetto blasters in his lyrics. Won't be rushing to see him again.
The Brakes are on their third album now, and have former members of British Sea Power in their ranks (which is how Rose probably ended up on the bill). Didn't really know much else about them or certainly know any songs but I did approach it with an open mind and ended up in the middle bit about halfway between the bar and stage. They were good but a bit weird and I think you'll need to acquire their taste. Some of it was typical indie, some country songs or influences at least and some songs lasting no more that two seconds! They don't look like musicians but more like Camra members, though that probably is their obtuse appeal. I moved to the back in the encore to ensure a quick exit so they must have lost marks somewhere along the line. However, may be worth an investment in an album before I decide whether to return for a future gig if theirs or not.