Moody, stylish, and unique. The Violets have a sound and look that can be mistaken for no other.

On stage they are mysterious. The instrumentalists aloofly melt into the background in their grey bowler hats and suits whilst the singer swishes and stomps her way around the stage in black and white, her signature black panda eyes peering out from beneath a messy blonde bob and the only colour on stage being the luminous red lipstick that has been smeared across her pouting lips.

Their songs are spiky, scratchy, pokey and have a pounding, syncopated rhythm which will make you want to move. The Violets are a very word-of-mouth band and so only have a small following. This is a good thing because it means that the gigs are more intimate for the crowd, but The Violets deserve to be playing to larger audiences.

The Black Tulips are very much in the same vein; an underground artrock band, but their music has a much more manic, disjointed and surreal feel, reflected in their colourful and unique attire. The Black Tulips have got a lot of potential and it would be interesting to see where they are twelve months from now. The more they played, the more they relaxed into the gig and the singer’s crazy oversized spider-like movements were particularly entertaining to watch!

If you like artrock, indie or “delicate punk", as The Violets like to call themselves, then seeing The Violets is a must.

To hear The Violets’ or The Black Tulips’ music, go to www.myspace.com/thevioletsuk or www.myspace.com/theblacktulips