November 4, 1999

London Islington Red Eye

Obviously it's also an untold bonus that lead singer [B]John Cristopher[/B] doesn't sound like the scary, sandpaper-throated one in [a]Gomez[/a]...

Call it the Gomez effect, if you like, but everyone in the know wants to be a gnarled 53-year-old rolling tobacco on a porch in balmy Texas heat. This time, blues is truly the new black.

Of all the bands catching on to this, London-based Channel 6 are easily the most intriguing. They muddle unashamed blues influences with the coolest of indie references, stripping away pretentious tedium and retaining a sense of flippancy about the whole glum affair.

Obviously it's also an untold bonus that lead singer John Cristopher doesn't sound like the scary, sandpaper-throated one in Gomez. Instead, he's a dapper indie cross between Lou Reed and Johnny Cash, wrenching his voice from the pit of his stomach like a stoned lone ranger.

To bizarre but stunning effect, this drawls over a sprawling guitar soundscape on new single 'She Calls Your Name' and somehow turns out as hazily psychedelic and self-indulgent as The Doors or The Verve. Weighty comparisons for a year-old band to live up to, perhaps, but you get the feeling Channel 6 won't feel the pressure. The blues, after all, refuse to be rushed.