Milburn

Brixton Academy is literally crawling as iconic radio station XFM presents its biggest night out to date. While the delights of The Smiths, Pulp and Kaisers take over the decks of its three rooms, three of the best young bands add a dash of live to the indie knees-up, including Milburn. Introduced by DJ Iain Baker, the 'Scrappy Doos’ of South Yorkshire are first up and having already proved themselves to be a good enough reason to get there early, it’s no surprise a massive number flee the disco areas and flock to the main hall.
Cheeky vocalist and bass player Joe Carnall literally dances on to the stage with the rest of his party - Greeny, Tom and big brother Louis - in tow. Down to earth, smart and armed with great rapport he exudes a tremendous confidence way beyond his years without losing that perky passion. As baby of the group and band leader he lacks the temptation to play his 'youth’ and 'status’ cards to justify a little attitude. It’s this grounding that endears you even more to a band many deem second-best next to Arctic Monkeys.
A plug for recent debut album 'Well Well Well’ meets with the cheers of satisfied customers who proceed to join in every one of the plucky, punky, ska-ridden numbers like 'Storm in a Teacup’ and 'Cheshire Cat Smile’. However it's stand-out single 'Send In The Boys’ that, being so ridiculously contagious after its misleading drum roll intro, has everyone emphatically singing the nifty riff as well as the lyrics.
And the energy fails to dwindle. Waving a friendly fist at the crowd, Joe adds: 'Now we’re warming up,' after 'Showroom’ prompts the standard group chant 'the book that you’re reading is upside down’ but the half hour soon draws to a close. The crowd are indeed toasty for the long night ahead and perhaps, with hindsight, they’re a little too hot, too soon.
Thrashing chorus-driven single 'What You Could’ve Won’ is the curtain call and articulates a perfect parting sentiment. In response to everlasting comparisons with their arctic counterparts, Milburn again show, even in such a limited timeslot, they’re actually standing on the shoulders of the award-winning Sheffield giants.