Whispering Bob and The Rock of Travolta @ the Zodiac, 10th Feburary, 2001

Every so often, at a gig, you would feel that you were on the verge of something big, one of those nights that would go down in musical history. Tonight was one of those nights. From the current crop of bands in Oxford, if any were to be successful, then it would have to be at least one of the two bands tonight, Whispering Bob (or Goldrush as they're now known) or The Rock of Travolta. What's so amazing is that the two bands are so different, but yet had quite a few similarities. They are both associated with Truck (perhaps they have the Midas touch?), one band being the founder of the label, the other on Truck offshoot Juggernaut, and both bands have Joe Bennet as a member.

Just with for anyone who's successful, the Rock of Travolta backslash has started already, though how anyone can hate the band having seen them play is beyond belief. It is very fustrating to see such a good band, with songs like The Song Which Cannot be Named not being given any airplay, when you know that if they were even played once on the radio, the demand for airplay will be so great that you wouldn't escape from their music for the subsequent weeks. Particularly amusing was the look of recognition on the audience's faces as they realised the melody of How's Your Father was from Star Wars, and then how the look changed into wonder as the song climaxed to its feedback end.

Coming on after The Rock of Travolta, Goldrush's music was even more gentle and beautiful than usual. Playing the sensitive side to the Truck roster, their songs have heartfelt lyrics. They have dropped their rockier songs, to replace them with more gentle songs, whether this is a clever ploy to fit in with the current crop of gentle guitar music, or is just the band maturing, only time will tell. As yet the newer songs don't have the same impact as the older songs, but maybe that's the case of familiarity, and it's only a matter of time until songs like Pioneers will be as special as Don't Bring Me Down.

Both bands have been through a fair share of bands, at least 6, to arrive at these perfectly formed groups. And for all the hard work they've put in, Goldrush particularly deserve success. Growing from Cresta, who were slagged off all the time, to being one of the most powerful groups around, with their Truck empire. It shows what perserverance can do.