First up, we have Stoat, a two-piece comprising Cormac Parle and John Hearne, who come from Dublin. Cormac and John wrote and performed the three songs on this tape. ‘Pepper Pie’ is the first of the bunch with an uptempo feel and a clattering rhythm. The production is not great and there are some tuning problems on the vocal front, particularly the backing vocals. ‘A Day Or A Lifetime’ is slower and although it is also hampered by poor production, it is a strong song and comes off well thanks to some fine playing by the duo.

‘The King Is Dead’ is the final song here and besides having an intro that owes a lot to David Bowie’s ‘Space Oddity’, is a fine melodic track. Again the playing is very good, particularly the electric guitar, and I would say this is easily my favourite song of the three. To round up I would say Stoat have some good ideas and with an increased budget they could well come up with the goods.

Strange Street Station from Dublin are up next with a five song demo. ‘TV Trial’ is the opening track and despite a strong melody and good lyrics, there is something really dated about the sound of it. Personally I think its the rhythm, a sort of white reggae/skank, which unfortunately also crops up on the second song ‘Seventeen Winters’. The chorus here is especially catchy and the keyboard lines are imaginative.

The playing, in general, is excellent but the overall sound is very early ’80s and I can’t help but wonder just who it would appeal to. ‘To Young To Worry’ is a slow song with a strong vocal line and it fares better than the first two. ‘Watch From A Distance’ sees the return to the reggae rhythm and the inevitable murder of a potentially good song.

‘Keep On Movin’’ is the final song and, surprise, surprise, its regatta de blanc with funky choruses. Strange Street Station have got some very good raw material which, I believe, is presented badly. This group would really benefit from a producers input.

From County Down, we have The Mandelbret Set who are a basic two-piece of Sharon Morgan and John Mills. Morgan is the lead singer and Mills, the guitarist/songwriter. They have recently put a group together and are rehearsing for up-and-coming Belfast gigs. The first song on their four track demo is ‘Walk’. It has a ‘shuffley’ blues influence which shows Morgan to have a strong voice and well capable of doing her own backing vocals. ‘L-shaped Woman’ has an Eastern feel to it, thanks to Morgan’s original melody lines.

Mills lays down a lush musical backdrop with bongos, acoustic guitars and mandolin, all layered nicely. Its an intoxicating mix of Trad/Folk and Eastern mantras. ‘Grip’ has a very catchy riff overwhich Morgan spins another of her lyrical tales. Not only can she sing but her lyrics draw you into the heart of the song — a rare delight!

The closing track, ‘Fifty Doors’, is a breezy, summery affair. A straight beat, a strumming acoustic, waves of backing vocals and another sterling vocal performance round off this collection pleasingly. The only minor criticism would be some of the drum tracks, which are often very repetitive. However, the addition of new band members should straighten this out. Keep an eye out for The Mandelbret Set — I surely will!

From Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, we have the funk rock, hip-hop crossover known as PYG. PYG are a four piece group made up of Steve Burton on vocals, Duffy Cooper on bass/backing vocals, Ed Rose on guitar/backing vocals and Bill Cartledge on drums and yes you guessed it, backing vocals. ‘Fruits’ kicks off in a heavy Chili Pepper style.

The sound is hard, crisp and clean. PYG are very much a live band and strangely enough they manage to transform this dynamic to tape — no mean feat. ‘Animal Tragic’ shows Burton to be a fine rapper. His relaxed delivery coupled with the lush instrumental backing, leads into a satisfying climactic chorus. ‘Urban Methodology’ finds PYG in rock out form. Its a heavy belter but PYG seem to have the knack of making their music easily accessible. I would say it is a combination of experience, talent and a good record collection. PYG round off this excellent tape with a paean to Marijuana — ‘The Saga of Sativa’.

The lyrics are a clever history lesson and state of play address. As usual, they are matched by another cracking musical track. I can only say I am extremely impressed with PYG and should you get the chance, check them out. This is a strong recommendation.

Finally, this time, perhaps one of the strangest tapes I’ve ever received is ‘What I Want For Christmas’ which features the lyrics of Anne Crehan, the music of Paul Hayes and the voice of John Taylor. I’m not quite sure, but this seems to be a child’s lyric, married to a Gilbert O’Sullivan wannabe’s musical version of a Christmas song and sung by a Karaoke Daniel O’Donnell.

This is unbelievably MOR and don’t know whether to take it seriously. I’d like to take this opportunity to warn the public of any ‘Grandma We Love You’ type Christmas songs being released this year. I’ve passed the buck so its out of my hands now!!

Thank you and good-bye!