The first thing you notice about CAPTAIN BRINGDOWN AND THE BUZZ KILLERS is that their name is unusual. I was pleasantly expecting to hear something differrent, something fresh, something entertaining (like with 'Big Paulie Cool And The Mental Institution'). Unfortunately, we didn't get anything new or different, except the name. Nevertheless, Capt. Bringdown were capable and played their material relatively well. Nothing excellent - about the usual sort of standard you could expect at a Student live gig or similar. Their major let-down, for me and I suspect for the judges, was their approach. It seemed that this was basically a jam-session for them. Not very professional for a bands competition which, while they may be pretty passe these days, are still a good way to make the step to studio/recording time or a free producers or whatever. Capt. Bringdown were not good enough to win this event and they will probably have known that as soon as they heard the other bands. However, they have got the ability (if they change the attitude) to make themselves a 'proper' band. By that, I mean there is nothing wrong with appearing to the punters to be just a bunch of lads having a bit of craic, but you also have to appear to judges and other interested parties (promoters, reviewers etc) to be taking the thing seiously and being as professional about it as you can. On a final note, if this seems harsh, here's an example: Capt. Bringdown started their second number (a cover version) and after about a verse and a half they just stopped. No explanation or anything. I accept they may have had a techni-glitch (broken string, missed chord, whatever) but don't just ignore the punters - tell them what's going on! Not many of their numbers were introduced with titles but the 4th track was their best. It had a lovely walking-pace bass-line and it was distinct from the rest of their material in that it was imaginative and sometimes clever. The previous track (which might have been called "I Am Free") displayed the vocal range reasonably well as it was played without the beneift of over-powering instruments. Being almost an acousitc song it was clear and easy to hear. Capt. Bringdown have a lot of progress to make before they are in the same league as even Dextra or The Foundry but 'never say never'...
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