CSS @ The Liquid Room

Lovefoxx has acquired a reputation for bizarre costumes and on-stage antics over the last few months, and tonight she doesn't disappoint. Taking to the stage with a large paper bag over her head, she manages an entire song with it in place, finally revealing her broad grin for single Alala. It's her persistent effervescence that pulls the band, and the crowd, through CSS's brief set, and as the rest of them swap instruments with gay abandon she focuses our attention while sporadically throwing herself into the crowd. The cover of L7's Pretend We're Dead is lost on most of the teenaged fans, but when they close with Let's Make Love And Listen To Death From Above, the entire room jumps in time. They may be a little rough around the edges, but their energy and enthusiasm are second to none. [Dan Coxon]