With so many venues up and down the country saying 'adios' and shutting up shop more and more these days, it was a pleasure to be invited to The Underground on Mutley Plain in Plymouth to watch 3 incredible bands. 

The three acts performing were LGM ONE, Moriaty and Chay Snowdon. I had a quick chat with Chay before the show and he told me that he has just come out of the studio and is hoping to put out a AA-side single later on in the year. Jordan and Matthew from Moriaty have also been hard at work on their new album, Josiah J Manning is producing it and looking at the sterling work he's been doing with Kris Barras recently, they can't go wrong!

LGM ONE are synth led melodic electro/guitar band who produce some incredible music, "Bully" was one of the stand out tracks from their set. Comprised of 5 members, they kicked out some impressive angular riffs, complemented with the synth which broke up the driving rhythm until it the band came together once more in an awesome crescendo. "Can't Breathe" is going to be a single from their new album Dimensions which will be released at a launch party on August 3rd at The Underground where they'll be accompanied by a Liskeard 4 piece called Raikes. They ended with a track called "Inferno", mentioning that it fitted the unusually warm summer weather we have been enjoying of late!

Up next were the formidable duo (no, not Batman & Robin) that are Moriaty, Jordan West and Matthew Partridge were on top form with a set spanning their back catalogue including crowd pleasing numbers such as "Bones", "Pure Filth" and a new offering called "24/7" which is going to be included on their new album, currently in progress in a studio just outside of Plymouth.

I chatted to Matthew ahead of the show and he said that they are trying to achieve a more 'poppy' sound, which, for these two purveyors of filthy blues, I find hard to believe but he seemed confident that I would like what I hear as soon as they start to release material in a teaser campaign leading up to the album release (no planned date yet folks). If it is half as good as their previous material, it will be well worth the wait!

I first saw Chay Snowdon when he played solo at the B Bar in Plymouth in March 2015 (click HERE for the review of the night) and we have kept in touch ever since. We have seen him perform at various local festivals over the years and chatted to him at Boardmasters Festival last year when he played the BBC Introducing stage. From the get go, I was impressed with his stage presence, which was much better than the last time I saw the band perform in Newquay last year.

Chay has really grown in confidence over the past couple of years and it was great to see the audience eating out of his hand tonight at The Underground. His band were superb, allowing him to steer the ship in the direction that he chooses and so far, he's not put a foot wrong.

He mentioned that he plans to have a AA side single out later this year, I for one am excited to hear this as I reckon it will pave the way for a long player soon afterwards.

Highlights from his set included "She's a Keeper", "Around The Sun" and a cracking cover of Elvis Presley's "That's Alright" which really showcased his roots which lie in traditional rock n' roll music. "Sha La La" is one of the new songs to appear on the AA side single later this year, it sounded stripped back, more of a mellow vibe than other energetic tracks but is in such a way that it allows the instrumentation and his voice to take centre stage, could easily see this becoming a firm favourite as a first dance at a wedding....I guess I should really mention Liam's great guitar solo too!

"Mon Cherie" is the latest single, one of the AA side maybe? more upbeat than Sha La La, a real powerhouse of a track with a driving beat and some crunchy guitars, the audience gave their approval with a huge round of applause.

Some of his set reminded me of an early Arctic Monkeys, raw, pure, unprocessed and fresh, his sound has evolved since I first saw him perform and I look forward to seeing him further up the bills on festivals both local and further afield to allow more people to jump on board the Chay Snowdon express.

You can see Chay Snowdon perform on the marquee stage at Chagstock Festival (in Chagford) on Saturday 21st July. 

Words and Pictures by Steve Muscutt