Make sure you head along to the Oxford Punt this evening. Running in venues across town from 6.00 pm until midnight(ish), it’s the best chance you’ll get all year to see as much local talent in one night as your poor brain can handle, and it’s an Oxford institution.  We’ll be reporting back on events later in the week, but for now, here’s the lineup:

Borders:
6.15 Faceometer
http://www.myspace.com/faceometer
7pm Desmond Chancer and the Long Memories
http://www.myspace.com/desmondchancerandthelongmemories

Purple Turtle
7.45International Jetsetters
http://www.myspace.com/internationaljetsetters
8.30 Tristan & The Troubadours
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=33119498
9.15 Elapse-O
http://www.myspace.com/elapseo
10pm Raggasaurus
http://profile.myspace.com/theraggasaurus

The Wheatsheaf
8.15 Cat Matador
http://www.myspace.com/catmatador
9pm Non-Stop Tango
http://www.myspace.com/nonstoptango
9.45 Alphabet Backwards
http://profile.myspace.com/alphabetbackwards
10.30 Rubberduck
http://www.myspace.com/rubberduckband

Thirst Lodge
8.30 Black Skies Burn
http://www.myspace.com/blackskiesburn
9.30 Little Fish
http://www.myspace.com/littlefishmusic
10.30 Sikorski
http://www.myspace.com/sikorskielectro
11.30 King Furnace
http://profile.myspace.com/kingfurnace

The Cellar
9pm Eduard Sounding Block
http://profile.myspace.com/eduardsoundingblock
10pm David K Frampton
http://www.myspace.com/davidkframpton
11pm 50ft Panda
http://www.myspace.com/50ftpanda
12 midnight Clanky Robo Gobjobs
http://www.myspace.com/clankyrobo 

Authenticity, there’s a vexed musical issue. How much does it matter when appropriating sounds and techniques, and at what point can doing something inauthetically become a tradition in its own right? If you want a handy analogy, try the British curry house: despite claims to the contrary stencilled in the bottom of restaurant windows, we all know that the madras you buy on a Friday night is not quite like what has been prepared in Madras for generations, but would it be wrong to say that the British curry menu is now a culinary heritage in its own right; and anyhow, if it tastes good, does it matter?

These thoughts float in the back of the mind as the Peanut Albinos’ EP opens with “The Most Insignificant Things”, a gorgeous concoction of bass, percussion, mandolin and bowed saw with a distinct North African flavour. However, although it’s probably nothing like what might get played in Tunis on an average evening, it does fit seamlessly into the 60s spy theme exotica sub-genre – think The Man From UNCLE visits Marrakech – and could easily be drawn from the dusty depths of some Ninja Tune artist’s crate marked “Obscure Samples”. Like a good prawn balti, the really significant fact is that it’s deeply satisfying, the bass creating a rubbery backdrop for some plucked strings so clipped and sharp they sound like needles dropping into lakes of crystal. The whole piece exhibits the most wonderful poise and delicacy, when it could so easily have become a knowing pastiche. Follow up “To Be A Number” introduces some vocals and ups the drama quota, but could have come from the same imaginary soundtrack.

“Just Another Day”’s unexpected banjo lope drags us unexpectedly across the globe to some sort of hillbilly campfire, where the rest of the CD seems content to kick back and relax…except the unexpected encroachment of some drunken lumberjacks on the chorus does break the spell somewhat (although the Albinos somehow get away with it). From hereon in we’re in the world of the backyard country ballad, all brushed drums, finger pickin’ banjos, guitar strums and world weary laments. Once again, the sense of restraint and control is quite astonishing, and almost unheard of at this level, but perhaps the compositions are somewhat pedestrian: only “How Do You Sleep, My Dear?” makes any sort of bid for the listener’s memory on the EP’s second half, resembling something Springsteen might knock off in one of his quieter moods.

Still, despite the feeling that it slopes off rather unobtrusively after it had started with such colour and tension, this record is still a real treasure with an understated style that’s as unexpected in Oxford as the melange of influences. If they could get a bit of Tom Waits grit into the vocals we could have one of the most intriguing live acts around. Note to self: go to Peanut Albinos gig.

Peanut Albinos Myspace

By David Murphy