Kingomar

There's been an overabundance of snotty attitude on the indie scene over the past couple of years. Not since Liam Gallagher inspired a nation of nobodies to snarl into their microphones have so many surly young dudes stepped on to our stages, dripping with attitude, if not an awful lot of substance, fully expecting to be fast-tracked to glory. It's one downside of the MySpace-led era of instant rock'*'roll gratification.

There is another way. Kingomar are a Merseyside quintet whose ambition is very much of the creative variety: classy songwriting and musicianship rather than the usual rabble-rousing call to arms. Formed in early 2006 and built around the hub of vocalist Andy Crawford and guitarist Rick Northcote, this surprisingly youthful outfit make an impressively accomplished noise that's really too big for their current surroundings - and a little unfair on their small-stage rivals, in truth.

They describe it as experimental indie, although there are clear reference points along the way. Northcote and fellow guitarist Tez conjure up an intense wall of sound redolent of The Verve's Nick McCabe, The Smiths' Johnny Marr, and U2's The Edge in their more relevant days. Meanwhile, the vocally versatile Crawford belts out his lyrics like a young Richard Ashcroft.

Accomplished they may be, but Kingomar certainly aren't without attitude. Indeed, their one attempt at a call-to-arms anthem, Mindless Rock'*'Roll, is a poke in the eye for their less-proficient contemporaries. 'Sick and tired of hearing the same bands, over and over again,' snarls Crawford. 'We're not the same as you'. - Metro