It’s becoming weird, reviewing Come On Gang! shows. I stumbled across them by total accident a while back, and since I really, really liked them back then, I think I might now be getting a bit snow-blind and maternal when it comes to trying to be objective and all that guff. Essentially, I’m worried I might have completely crossed the line between “Hey, here’s a band I like, and here are the reasons why” over into “I’m a total fucking slavering fanboy and they can do no wrong anymore”. That said, I’ve been in an absolutely towering fucking temper all day long, with less tolerance than normal for dumbness, inconvenience or, in particular, people not living up to expectations. So, if something can cheer me up today, there’s probably an awful lot good about it – and I’ve just got back from the Come On Gang! show at Sneaky Pete’s and I’m grinning like a bit of an idiot.

It’s been a while since I last saw Come On Gang back at the start of the year – since then, they’ve been to SXSW, played a bundle of decent support slots, and got a new cheerful and mohican-ed bassist called Rob. Tonight’s eight-song set doesn’t go anywhere new song-wise, with new-ish ones Red Fred and Santa Maria being the only two tracks not off the setlist from last year, but they seem to be playing with bagfuls more confidence. It might have just been the soundman’s skills but it sounds like they’ve grown new muscles, and are making it look easier and easier as time goes on.