I love New York bands to the deepest depths of my stoney heart. There is always something extra special, remarkable and gripping to see bands that emerge from that city. It’s an infectious city and its aura creeps up on me like Christmas to a child. Whether my interest is rooted in my very British intrigue with The Big Apple – an obscure city, full of opportunity, danger and mystery – or is due to the sincere consistency of formidable artists that have emerged from there is uncertain. When you look at its roots with punk music, no other city really runs as deep, arguably because of the intense claustrophobia and multiculturalism that the city brings about – from The Strokes to The Velvet Underground to Talking Heads and Sonic Youth – the intense smog of Manhattan has pushed bands to generate uptight atmospheres. If you want the scent of tarnished leather and savaged denim, look no further.

The Mystery Lights are the latest export from the city, hauled onto Wick Records that has become the subsidiary of Daptone Records, the prestigious soul label. The Mystery Lights are the first release on the new label and it seems I am not the only one interested tonight with a solid audience awaiting. Shed under a buzzing mass of red light, five gangly chaps approach the stage, each swamped within a mass of hair and dressed in ill fitting clothing. Armed with a bottle of tequila, it seems they mumble words of encouragement to one another before taking turns to throw back a swig on the bottle. I suspect in this instance it is to numb nerves more than to prove any rock’n’roll credentials.

For a band to pull together a headline set following the release of just one sole single, ‘Follow Me Home’ puts the testing ball firmly within their court. It shows tonight, however The Mystery Lights wrestle with the challenge rather than fall foul to it. Their set is song and dance through rock’n’roll, their energy onstage is faultless with frontman Mike Brandon showing a compulsive flair to sling his legs around with the grace of a frantic 14-year-old trying to impersonate James Brown to impress a lucky lady. The red light merges with their show, becoming an additional feature but a worthy one at that. It completely suited the tense feel that the group were trying to draw together as well as making The Hope and Ruin appear like a seedy house that you should never tell your other half you are visiting.

‘Follow Me Home’ is a coarse run through the likes of Night Beats and Cosmonauts, packed with hooks and jangling guitar lines, it certainly ushered the crowd into their most excited phase of the evening. For The Mystery Lights, the crowd by and large made it hard for them, probably partly due to the fact many songs were alien to them but nevertheless, the statue like figures never gave much to play with. This left one gentleman being the token Bez character in the crowd, flailing around captivated by the thrill for the weekend yelling how all he wanted was a tambourine to join in – fortunately, he was not given one. You got the sense The Mystery Lights were good for this though, they show potential for being a great band and when they found their flow through tracks such as ‘Melt’ and ‘Too Many Girls’, they really found their groove.

That was another issue though, lyrically it seems songs rest largely upon the topics of girls and parties. Now, by all means and purposes these are useful topics but, you kind of want more from rock’n’roll nowadays; the world has moved on and we all need to keep up – The Mystery Lights are no longer 16-year-olds staring at adult websites. When the gang find their rhythm on the evening, their set shows purpose and assertiveness, however at times between songs and through the midriff of the set, they lose this, appearing slightly like rabbits in headlights, losing direction slightly. With garage-rock’n’roll, it is important to always maintain direction and convince your audience of the same, without this the music is a sea of trebly guitar lines and four to the floor rhythms that bounce along with the purpose of a falling leaf.

The strong New York image they possess along with their rough and ready approach to their performance suggests that when they find a little more confidence and assertiveness in their onstage actions, they will really flourish as a band. They have all the right traits just without the conviction right now. It seemed they fell victim to a lack of released material on the night leaving no room for the crowd to really get into it, to really feel possessed by the energy. When they hit their heights though, they gave discerning notes of where they can go and what they can offer. This is exciting and with any luck, their debut will cement this notion further. No doubt when they hopefully return this autumn in support of their debut, they will cement themselves as an act, finding their energy a little easier. Keep an eye on The Mystery Lights, they are certainly one to keep you interested.
Tom Churchill

Website: mysterylightsband.com
Facebook: facebook.com/TheMysteryLights
Twitter: twitter.com/MYSTERYLIGHTS__