Dora Mars, 1 August, Frog & Parrot
The Frog & Parrot is a great little pub for a gig. The band is at ground level with the majority of the packed audience overlooking them, like in a mini amphitheatre.
After the two support bands have warmed up the crowd sufficiently, it's time for Dora Mars to make their hometown debut. The individual members have all been in previous bands, but maybe now they possess just the right line-up at just the right time?
They play uptempo pop songs with great melodies and hooks, with lyrics distilled through a quasi art school prism, hence their mangled Picasso-referencing moniker. The band have the classic two guitar, bass and drums setup, with a solid pulse of drums and bass allowing the main guitar to weave harmonic patterns aided by a plethora of gizmos and pedals.
more than enough nuggets to warrant more attention
Between song chat is kept to a minimum and this enhances the natural ebb and flow of the set. They have three tracks available on Spotify, which obviously all get an airing tonight. 'Mistake' floats on an atmospheric guitar motif, the chorus of 'Bottomfeeder' has an impassioned vocal accentuated by a subtle harmony, and lead track 'Straight Lines' mixes chiming guitar and elastic bass to great effect.
As with all new bands, some of these songs are stronger than others. Some may need to be tweaked or restructured, but there are already more than enough nuggets to warrant more attention and bigger audiences.
Pete Martin
