If there is a contemporary band that sums up all the things that Shindig! loves and stands for, it would be The Thanes. For over twenty years they have been the real deal, a perfect blend of Edinburgh, Amsterdam and San Francisco style garage-beat.
This live album presents 12 tunes "recorded in a dingy cellar" and proves that the band are just as great on stage as in the studio. Indeed, much of this album is similar in quality and content to the bands' recent shows at The Dirty Water Club. Over the years the '60s clothes and hairstyles have gone, so that the band now look like four very ordinary looking guys on stage – but who needs fancy clothes with a sound this good?
The five Angus McPake songs here show just what a fine writer he is. Over the past decade he has quietly contributed some of The Thanes' finest tunes, such as the jangly folk-rock classics 'World Of Stone' and 'Come What May', (which sits nicely beside the bands' classy cover of The Beau Brummels' 'Don't Talk To Strangers'). Excellent originals are mixed with tasty covers of Dutch and Scottish '60s beat tunes, effortlessly moving from driving punkers to great folk-rock with strong harmonies. My only reservation is that many of the songs have already appeared on previous Thanes' albums. I appreciate that the band are not prolific songwriters, but perhaps they might have slipped in a few more obscure, previously unrecorded covers. I don't want to sound picky, I'm just greedy for more! To quote Mr. Mills from his liner notes to the Rev-Ola Evolver CD: "Vintage music with a twist, beamed directly into the 21st century. Stuff this good just won't go away, come rain or shine, fad or fashion." (Shindig!)