FÜXA / LOS PLANETOS DEL AGUA -The Brewhouse Arts Centre, Burton-on-Trent (live) Posted by claire on Monday, February 25, 2002 If life’s getting you down, the weather’s so damn dreary you think summer will never emerge and you need a break from it all, head to Burton on Trent. Yes; Burton-on-Trent. The regular Reclaim The Beats evenings are joining promoters such as Zoot and The Catapult Club in Birmingham, and Nottingham’s very own Night With No Name in bringing engaging and exciting new music to the people of the Midlands, and in the latest of great gigs, Füxa and Los Planetos Del Agua promise not to disappoint. Looking slightly inconspicuous as they put their drinks down and take to the stage, Derby’s finest minimalist space rock outfit take to the stage and effortlessly set about a mesmerising ‘Selfish Killers and Patriotic Whores’ full of extra-terrestrial guitar and horns before erupting into a wash of power with one stamp on an overdrive pedal. ‘Column A Column B’ sparks with Tony P Woodall’s jagged riffs, and through the lulling ‘Columbo’ and dreamy avant acoustic blend of ‘They Sharpen As They Soothe’ the swollen crowd lap up every note and word. An outing of ‘Mules For The Cinema’, b-side of their Bearos single, receives warm appreciation from a receptive audience who applaud the gentle vocals and chiming guitar with controlled enthusiasm that suits the relaxed atmosphere in The Brewhouse Arts Centre, sat comfortably around the candlelight tables. Closing with an inspired rendition of ‘Mercury 13’, Matt Cousins pounds away from behind his drum kit as Richard Parry builds an intoxicating bass sound, allowing Woodall to wrangle the songs guts from his electric guitar before inconspicuously walking from the stage to take up his drink once more, and enjoy the rest of the evening. Following the thunderous beats of Aphex Twin and Squarepusher throbbing from the PA speakers, Füxa take to the stage at 11:00, frustratingly leaving just ten minutes to marvel at the sight of Telescope, Stephen Lawrie, tinker with his theremin and mooger fooger along with any amount of unknown sources of static and electronic burbling, whilst fellow Telescope Jo Doran picks carefully at her guitar. Like a wave, the sound coming from the speakers seems to rise and fall from nowhere, like a ghost, but at the same time with untold beauty and grace. Such a shame then that after such a brief glimpse the dash back to the station in order to catch the last train becomes a priority, preventing a night spent on a bench at Burton-on-Trent station on one of the coldest nights of the year. Most people want the trains to run on time, or have British Rail, Railtrack, Trains Ltd or whoever they are these days, to reduce their fares, which is all pretty hard to argue with. However, don’t be surprised if there soon grows a select band of protesters after a later train from Burton-on-Trent to Nottingham. Come on people, if we all pull together it could happen! Andy Robbins