Even when very poorly, Getdown Services can still bring the party - and then some. The Minehead two-piece describe themselves as rock and roll, and indeed they are, in the way that The Fall or the Chemical Brothers are rock and roll - chewing up raw energy and attitude and gobbing out delightfully filthy nuggets of sound. Don’t expect anything so sappy as a melody or a structure here, you'll find nothing so pretentious as that. Rather, each track is built around a single unassailably funky groove, overlaid with a wicked riff or two and topped off with lashings of ranty banter: musically, think T Rex remixed by Basement Jaxx on an Atari ST, or perhaps Fat Boy Slim jamming with some primordial version of Jimmy Page with most of his fingers cut off. Minimalist glam punk disco perhaps?
Duos with backing tracks have to work hard to capture the energy of a full band, but that’s no problem for Ben and Josh. Oozing exuberance (quite literally) they have the intensity of a whole army of musicians; imagining any more of them up there is actually quite frightening. I am reminded of both Sleaford Mods and Carter USM, other two-piece outfits who fuse the punk ethic with electronic beats and sardonic lyricism. There is clearly some kind of link to hiphop here also - the shouted choruses have definite shades of Run DMC - but you couldn’t really say they are rapping; anything as contrived as a rhyme would seem much too premeditated in this steaming broth. The lyrics are frank streams of consciousness: growling, witty deadpan commentaries on mundane aspects of life like waiting for a train or going to a shit party. Yet somehow these alienated diatribes, combined with hard guttural beats and grinding, compressed guitar riffs, manage to induce a catharsis approaching ecstasy .
For much of the first half of the set its just backing track and mics, but later the synths and guitars come out (“yeah we can play instruments as well!” they tell us as they strap them on; “as well as what?” some cheeky sod yells out). Head Down for the Conversation is a glorious slab of synth-pop replete with Chris-Rea-eat-yer-heart-out guitar solo; whilst the stripped down acoustic version of I Wish It Didn’t Bother Me proves (as if further proof were needed) that they are indeed great musicians and lyricists (and, in fact, can do structure if they feel like it).
Between tracks, like great stand-up comedians, they abuse the audience with finesse, and we love it. “We travel around a lot, and what’s nice is when you go to a place and find the stereotype is totally accurate,” they tell this Oxford crowd, before relaying an entitled conversation just overheard in the toilet cubicle. “How was work today, was it shit?,” they ask us later. “Sorry about all that stuff with the private schools and the VAT, Oxford, you must be gutted.”
Funny, furious and funky as hell. What more could you want?