The Monochrome Set

Event information

One of the most important and influential bands to emerge from the post punk scene in the late 70s.
The Monochrome Set was formed in 1978 by vocalist Ganesh 'Bid' Seshadri and guitarist Lester Square when art rock band The B-Sides split ( whose name-changing bassist Stuart Goddard formed Adam & The Ants). With a whimsical pop sensibility, clever lyrics and an idiosyncratic, retrogressive guitar-led sound, they bridged the gap between freak beat and post punk and effectively paved the way for groups such as The Smiths. Influencing a whole family tree of bands from Orange Juice and Fire Engines to The Divine Comedy, Graham Coxon and Franz Ferdinand, The Monochrome Set are back, with original members Bid and Lester Square sounding as fresh and exciting as ever. New CD out to tie in with tour.
Manchester antagonists Rapid Pig have been terrorising, delighting, baffling and enchanting listeners since the band's inception. Interlocking keyboards and guitars combine with visceral vocals and a muscular yet intricate rhythm section. Their disparate infuences are not set uncomfortably one after another in a linear fashion, rather somehow stacked vertically. The resultant blend is characteristically tweaked with spiky rhythms, eliptical arrangements and often startling dynamic shifts. Results have been described variously as 'apocalyptic' and 'I-don't-know-what-it-is-but-I-like-it.' The only parameters set by themselves have been to be different yet accessible.