It’s still light outside The Boileroom when Reading 3-piece Mellorstart the show. Their full-throttle indie with interesting time changes and irresistable confidence sounds like the sort of stuff Jake Bugg would like to play more of if he wasn’t being paid a lot of money to write radio-friendly hits. Sunny, yet jagged, guitar lines were often a high point and a warm reception was had for their first play of their upcoming single. If we’re being lazy we could look at this as standard working class lad rock, but it’s fun so what’s the harm even if it is? Apparently they usually have another member but “Christian is poorly”. To be honest, the direct sound provided as a 3-piece works pretty well so maybe Christian should go take a hike.

There’s a fair buzz building around Neon Waltz, with recent support from Radio 1 leading to a decent sized curious crowd gathering for the young men from Caithness. They nod to an early melodic jangle that’s not really rocking but is still too hearty to be considered ‘polite’. The real strengths are shown off when they sound expansive while retaining the feeling of dreamers in a bedroom making life-changing sounds all Summer. Their real secret weapon is the bloke on keys, on more than one occasion his uplifting playing was responsible for a crystallised belief that all was good in the world.Through a cloud of smoke they had a pumping finish, although it still felt like there was more in the tank for another time. Are they deserving of the hype? There’s a way to go, but it’s certainly enjoyable for the time being.

If sepia had a sound, it would probably be Bordeauxxx. Having impressed us in the live rounds of last year’s Fast Track to Benicassim contest, we were well versed in their handclaps, gang vox, and promiscuous use of a xylophone. Complex passages in some of the verses were eased away by lo-fi hi-fructose joyous indie-pop choruses. A slower number felt like a perfect ‘last dance’ track, and was built with the exclusive aim of making people’s mouths touch. That’s pretty noble.