Sandman Live Review

http://www.sandmanmagazine.co.uk

Captain Wilberforce / Sidecar
Cloth Cat Open Mic Night @ The Primrose 09/2005

Open mic nights are like a box of chocolates – Just as it is unwise to scoff an entire box of confectionary in one go, so the two-songs-and-you’re-off mentality of the open mic night is not always the best place to experience what could be your new favourite band. However, these nights exist for some very good reasons, and here’s two of them.
Captain Wilberforce steers his music through seas of winsome pop with ease. Accompanied by, erm, himself recorded on 4 track his music achieves the type of energetic, dark tinged wistfulness that I find very alluring, recalling Belle and Sebastian and 90’s Cure. His lyrics are knowing and definitely the right side of twee (“For every deadline there’s always an excuse” being a personal favourite). He has a likeable presence and smiles like David Bowie after a particularly productive mid-‘70’s coke binge. I wanna hear more from the good Captain…