This Is Music @ Henry's Cellar Bar, 29 Mar

A fiver well spent, has been the general consensus of previous This Is Music events, a conclusion which is echoed tonight. Kicking off in ambitious style are Collar Up (2/5), a two piece keys 'n' drum outfit. Ambition proves to be a dangerous catalyst, as the band embark on an operetta of sorts, and in the end the ambition remains unfulfilled. Just as climactic peaks appear within their grasp, they seem only too pleased to descend back into the doldrums of uneventful minor chord verse.

As their first footing here, second act, Proxy (4/5), seize the opportunity to showcase their raw but brilliant talent within the compact environs of Henry's. Hailing from London and signed to A-Records, this lot could be worth keeping an eye on. Starting out sounding a wee bit Yo La Tengoey and touching on late Blur with an accomplished Cockney swagger throughout, their sound is derivative in the most respectful way possible, taking the best bits from each of the aforementioned. With such a sprawling palette and two potential lead singers in their rank, Proxy have, on this evidence, the makings of a very decent début album.

Headlining tonight are Odeon Beat Club (3/5), hot on the release of their own début LP. Initially these ears believed that this is what The Beach Boys would sound like had they grown up on North Berwick beach, such was the harmonious, yet distinctly Scottish nature of their early numbers. This notion subsides as they moved inward to a more garagey sound, taking in The Strokes, Idlewild and chunky Kings of Leon-like basslines along the way. Whilst not as electrifying as their Southern predecessors, Odeon Beat Club round off a quality evening in fine, tuneful fashion. [Finbar Bermingham]