​NO DIRECTION HoT BOYS

To be honest, I thought I’d booked the boy band of similar name and was worried about how the crowd would react!

 

They strolled, leisurely, onto the stage and tentatively picked up their instruments. The crowd were baying for blood, but then the first chord was plucked from the ukelele and the crowd were silenced. By the end of the gig the crowd were in hysterics and shouting for an encore. It just goes to show that there are no substitutes, we had gone from ‘Boys to Men’.

 

We loved every minute of their set and a ‘Space Oddity’ is a visual treat. A must see and we will be inviting them back for Wigfest 2015

Keith McDonagh (Festival Director)

 

Packed into a tiny space at The Little Angel on Friday 7th, and one of the opening acts for the Brakspear Jazz and Blues week, were local ‘boy band’ NO DIRECTION HoT BOYS. For those unfamiliar with this ‘six piece comedy trio’, as they describe themselves, they are neither a Jazz nor Blues group but play an eclectic mix of songs, some written by themselves and others you may know, although not necessarily in the way they play them.

 

I was wondering if The Little Angel would be a good venue for them. Previously when I’ve seen the group they have been in cabaret settings and often with an audience liberally sprinkled with people who’ve seen them before so know what to expect so a gig in an unfamiliar environment with ‘strangers’ as an audience could prove intimidating for them or so I thought.

 

There was no need to worry. The pub was packed with diners and drinkers and there was an air of expectation as it seemed most had come along to see the band. They were not disappointed. From the very beginning opening bars of ‘12th Street Rag’ the group had the audience enthralled and often singing along or laughing at the presentation of such classic hits as ‘King of The Swingers’, ‘Jolene’ and ‘I Will Survive’. Perhaps the biggest surprise was the whole pub joining in with self penned future Eurovision hit ‘Bingy Bingy Bangy Bong’ with its very catchy chorus. I’m still trying to get it out of my head days later.

 

Highlights though were their tribute to Kraftwerk ‘Das Autobus’ putting the lyrics of ‘The wheels on the Bus’ to the tune ‘The Model’. The delight of watching people struggle to reconcile the mix and then enjoying the minimalist dance routine was almost as much fun as watching the group perform ‘Space Oddity’ with full costume change and an unprecedented stylophone solo. A great evening to start off the festival. Jazz and Blues? Not in it’s purest sense but what great fun. NO DIRECTION HoT BOYS come  highly recommended.

 

Alison Sellars