inme_rocks-reviews

HALF AN hour before InMe are due onstage, the buzz around The Monarch's modest upstairs live room is electric. Tonight is a showcase gig, with entry via guest-list to the first 150 or so eager fans who got in touch with the band's record company through their website.

"We wanted to get a buzz going and and check out our hardcore fan-base," explains singer Dave McPherson. "A lot of our fans are under 18," chirrups, spiky-haired bassist Joe Morgan. "The idea was to give them something back by having an all-ages gig."

Huddled at the back of the venue sporting a bouffant hair and looking like he'd be more at home at a Robert Plant gig, Steve Robinson stands patiently waiting for tonight's turn to take to the stage. Steve is one of the more 'mature' fans, yet the 37-year-old self-confessed Rush fan is more vocal in his praise of InMe, mainly because "they're British and they have good tunes". As the Essex trio only have one single commercially available, it's safe to say he's talking about 'UnderDose', the titanic track that is currently mauling the upper reaches of the Kerrang! TV video chart.

Unless you've recently decamped to Outer Mongolia, then you'll know it; coming on with subtlety of a sledgehammer, the boasts an irresistible dynamic chorus - and the good news s that there is more where that came from. 'Overgown Eden', InMe's debut album, due for release in September, is crammed full of finely-crafted metallic gems with groves that gel themselves firmly to the frontal lobes.

      "They deserve to be huge," gushes 15-yr old Amy Pettit, a recent convert to InMe's cause having caught them supporting Soil. "There's real passion and emotion behind the music." And when Dave Screams his lungs out on 'UnderDose', undoubtedly the most frenetic mosh-pit moment of the evening, you can't help but agree. Despite suffering from back problems, the frontman thrusts himself into each song with vigour, delivering every lyric with undisputed passion and verve. Joe Morgan meanwhile, darts around the stage in an energetic display of madcap acrobatics that is exhausting to watch. And despite drummer Simon Taylor being dwarfed by his kit - his head is barely visible from behind his skins - InMe's stage presence is overwhelming.

     There may be a soft drinks only policy at the bar due to most of tonight's audience being under the legal drinking age, but a cursory glace around the venue indicates that InMe certainly have the potential to reach an older demographic - those who have been around long enough to remember prog rock, say. It's a pigeonhole that some have already tried to force InMe into, on account of their music's more epic elements. The band themselves react indifferently to such allegations.

     "We're into progressive music like Tool and Pink Floyd," continues McPherson, prehaps unwisely adding, "and even, dare i say it, Dream Theater. But i wouldn't say we were prog rock. I'd like to think we're part of the British upsurge of rock," The nearest that InMe come to prog rock tonight is 'Ice Warm', a slow-buring song laden with mellow guitar grooves and a hulking great chorus. The crowd love it.

     Fittingly, InMe end the set with 'Lava Twilight', a fusillade of down-tuned guitars, demented effects, and powerful heartfelt vocals. If McPherson's performance seems more hyper and intense than before, then it's perhaps because this is the song that landed his band a record deal. The story goes that their support set at a Camden club overran when Simon Taylor broke a cymbal, meaning that the Music For Nations A&R man who arrived intending to catch the long-forgotten headline act fortuitously found himself hearing the last two songs of InMe's set. He promptly signed them up - and the rest, as they will undoubtedly say, is history. Tonight, the cheering continues unabated several minutes after 'Lava Twilight' has reached its climatic close and the lights go up.

It's easy to see why InMe inspire such devotion. After the gig, the band take part in an impromptu signing session, talking to fans and scribbling on posters and CDs. The rabid post-gig chatter centres around the fact that given a high profile support slot InMe could well be massive, the general consensus being they won't be playing venues of this size much longer. And while implying that InMe are the future of British Rock is somewhat premature at such an early stage in their career, there's enough evidence tonight to suggest that they are in with a fighting chance. Watch Them Grow.

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