I HIT the road again to track down another Basingstoke band and fortunately both the weather and M3 traffic were on my side.

The band in question were Ill Gotten Gains, a brand new ska-punk band, filled with a lot of familiar faces from umpteen other cool bands. This was their second show and I was glad to be checking them out in their career.

They have already released a killer EP and given their pedigree, I had no worries about what I was to see. Nailed it, I think. Tight and gutsy, this was a great performance which went down well with the crowd. Far too good to be opening up really, but you have got to pay your dues in this business. I will definitely be seeing these lads again.

Next up some local lads in the shape of The Resuscitators, who I have not seen before. They won me over instantly with their very fast, pop-punk style punk, albeit with a nice bit of attitude.

Their amusing gimmick was the "set list Tombola" - they'd written out all the names of their songs on scraps of paper, popped them in a beer glass and got the audience to pick them out. They sometimes struggled to play their songs 'out of order' but the set was never less than excellent.

Mid way slot was taken by another band new to me, Monkish, who come from 20 miles up the road from Kingston - but I don't know which direction. They were unequivocally a 'comedy' band, with three front men, one dressed in silly costumes and playing the bag-pipes and another dressed in all manner of unconvincing and unsettling women's clothes.

Their songs were funny and mostly rude and they had two great strengths. Firstly a lot of interaction with the crowd and secondly, they could play and play well, so it all worked very well indeed.

Main support was provided by another local band and new favourites of mine, The Wonderbeers. I have seen these guys a number of times now and they never fail to make me happy. They make some serious points with their light-hearted songs. Their stuff is catchy, so catchy that you find yourself singing along before you even realise it. (If the ad men get hold of them they'll be able to sell anything they like!) A great performance from a great contemporary punk band.

The headline band were also a 'comedy' band, called Arse Full of Chips and this is the start of their final tour. They have actually been around for a while, but somehow I never got to see them before. They had no drummer, but I don't know if it’s because they never had a drummer, or if he just wasn't there on the night.

Again, silly costumes and funny songs, mostly rude and about pressing social and political issues of the day. Great fun, but I felt that Monkish topped them on the musical stakes.

Still it was a first class punk show, with five excellent bands who I thank, along with the promoter and the management and staff of the venue. (Also a special thanks for the weather - the high winds and rain did not kick in until I was home and tucked up in bed!)

Neil Duncan, ISSUEPUNKZINE