- Music
- 19 May 11
Pop music isn't used to acts like this – but it could really do with some of their energy!
They've got absolutely nothing in common with the Van Halens, they couldn't be further away form the Von Trapps, and only their home country connects them to the Gibbs, but London vintage rockers Kitty, Daisy and Lewis work just as hard as any family band you can think of.
It seems like every instrument on the Button Factory stage is fair game tonight, as Kitty (drums, vocals and harmonica), Daisy (drums, vocals, beatbox) and Lewis (drums, guitar, keys and vocals) perform a kind of advanced musical version of a Chinese Fire Drill. The trio's incessant role-swapping between songs makes their parents look lethargic for sticking to one instrument (Dad on rhythm guitar and Mum on upright bass).
It's crucial that these three retro whipper snappers (youngest Kitty is just 18) get the details right – their first ever Irish audience contains one hard core throwbacker after another, and something tells me that they're liable to get ancy if someone's quiff falls out of place.
Luckily, there's no cause for alarm – the look is flawless, Lewis' bluesy drawl is something entirely out of another era (never better than on the self-penned 'Buggin Blues'), and Kitty and Daisy even bop along with an Andrews Sisters wiggle.
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Their earlier recordings are well represented in the Hawaiian vibes of 'Baby, Hold Me Tight' and with a rousing version of Canned Heat's 'Goin' Up The Country', complete with infectious hand claps. Meanwhile, tunes from their new album Smoking In Heaven showcase an altogether broader sound with flashes of reggae, jazz and even a contemporary influence or two (see Daisy's beatboxing on 'Don't Make A Fool Out Of Me').
Legendary trumpeter Eddie ‘Tan Tan’ Thornton (me neither, but the Internet tells me he played on The Beatles' 'Got To Get You Into My Life') joins them for new single ‘I’m So Sorry’. Despite pushing 80 years old, the Jamaican horn-player slots right in and all six musicians happily sink into the calypso mood. If any further proof were needed of the three stars' musical credentials, this is it.
Pop music isn't used to acts like Kitty, Daisy and Lewis, or indeed their levels of passion, dedication, and faithfulness to the sounds of the past, but one thing's certain – it could really do with some of their energy.