Stuffy and The Fuses

Ah singing drummers, they’re a rare breed. We of course have the woeful Phil Collins and his power ballads from hell and now we have Stuffy and his Fuses to join in on the fun, and trust me they provide a lot more fun than Phil Collins ever has!

Stuffy may be better known as Graham Coxon’s touring drummer however it is clear that he is just as much at home fronting a band as he is being hidden at the back of the stage behind the Blur legend. Stuffy uses a unique drumming technique, hitting each drum with the same style you would slap a thigh and bouncing up and down as if his drum stool is in fact a miniature trampoline. His voice has that distinct English sound to it recalling the likes of Chris T-T and in places his sometime band mate Graham Coxon. However it is with his voice that the English vibe from Stuffy & The Fuses begins and ends. The music blasted out from onstage has very much an American feel about it and this is where The Fuses come in.

The Fuses back up Stuffy’s drums and vocals with harmonies reminiscent of The Beach Boys and instrumentation in the style of Shellac with hints of the Kinsella brother’s bands such as Cap n Jazz thrown in for good measure. This gig saw only the second gig of a new Fuse, Lucy, on keyboards, formerly of The Secret Hairdresser. She fits in well with the band, all who seem to be swamped by Stuffy in both size and stage presence however their musical input does not go unappreciated.

The band play a tight set of catchy songs mixing American post punk sounds with pop melodies. They even take time mid way through the set to present a member of a local band in the audience with a rendition of Happy Birthday and not one, but two packets of Haribo!

As the set progresses it becomes apparent that although songs like “Friend” and “Where’s the Captain” are great fun and catchier than most of the charts, there is in fact not much variety between them. Whilst the band can get away with this in a live setting due to the great charisma of Stuffy it remains to be seen whether or not attention would drift away when listening to the same performance on record or fronted by a slightly less quirky sticksman.

For an encore we are treated to a cover of the fantastic Quasi, who are themselves on tour in the UK very soon. Stuffy then takes himself away from his beloved drum kit and has a wander through the crowd during the introduction of the final song, singing into the dancing crowd’s faces before returning to his kit for a rapturous final fling. Bouncing his way through one final number he bids the crowd farewell and disappears along with his Fuses. A fun nights entertainment indeed and a welcome boost to the credibility of singing drummers!

FUTURE GIGS

sorry, we currently have no gigs listed for this act.