3/9/2010 Dirty Harry & The Dogbones @ The Workshop

Subject	Dirty Harry & The Dogbones @ The Workshop
PostedDate	9/3/2010
	A bit of a change of scene tonight as I'm off down Hoxton way. I'm going to The Workshop - a newish venue under Roadtrip in Old Street. This very intimate (capacity 60) downstairs venue only has bottled beverages at the bar, so if you want a pint of anything (only keg lagers and cider on tap) you have to head back upstairs. You have to go back upstairs if you want a piss as well, but at least the toilet is clean and well maintained - which is more than can be said for some of my more regular haunts.  It's only £4 on the door tonight which is top value for money for four bands - although I'm only interested in seeing a couple of them. Microdance are on first. They are a bit indie for my taste, but they sound good at what they do. I'm hoping to see the Dogbones next, but there is an acoustic singer/songwriter guy on instead - again, he's good at what he does. My problem is getting the last train home as if I miss it I need two night buses to get home and a longer walk at the end.  By this point things are already starting to go wrong as the Dogbones were supposed to be on at 10.00.  It's actually around 10.45 before they take to the stage - which is when Dirty Harry was supposed to be on, which would have just given me time to leg it around 11.15 for the last train. The Dogbones eventually (through no fault of their own) take to the stage to a packed room. There are quite a few familiar faces here to see this lively Queen Adreena offshoot. I've seen this band a few times now, and their sound is getting tighter and tighter - but with singer Nomi adding a streak of punk rock chaos and unpredictability. Crispin's guitar sound and style are the only audible connection to Queen Adreena, but Nomi's antics on stage have something in common with Katie Jane Garside as she attacks band members mid-song and Crispin has to get his comb out to straighten his hair. The presence of a bottle of red wine onstage is something else that Katie Jane used to make good use of in Queen Adreena, although Nomi is very much her own person and neither looks nor sounds anything like Queen Adreena's enigmatic singer. I think the band sound particularly good tonight and their twin drummer attack is highly effective, along with Crispin's jagged shards of guitar noise slicing the air apart. Next up is Dirty Harry - with a new lineup. The new band rocks, but not as hard as it did before - The Rev is a hard act to follow.  When I heard Harry had a complete new band backing her I wondered if that meant a change of direction - maybe veering towards pop?  I needn't have worried - this is still very much a ROCK band. Unfortunately I have to rush off after they finish as although I've missed the last proper train from Kings Cross, I'm hoping I still might be able to catch the tube. Wrong.  It's cold for early September and I didn't bother bringing a jacket - so I don't enjoy the long and tedious journey home and the wait for two night buses. The Skuzzies are supposed to be playing later, but I wasn't going to hang about after midnight to see them as I wasn't very impressed when I saw them in Camden a couple of years or so ago. Still, apart from the miserable journey home it's been a worthwhile night.