It's Getting Hot In Herre.  Maybe it's the seaside that keeps Som Warner and his band coming back to this city, but tonight's fourth Portsmouth appearance for My Vitriol in eighteen months finds the band (and audience) in temperatures more accustomed to the Mediterranean coast than that of southern England.  It is boiling in the Wedgewood Rooms.  Openers Wilt provide a solid introduction to the evening, with some powerful lead vocals, and Halo could be the first ever King Adora tribute band, were they not to have the potential to become a bigger act themselves, with their impressive three way harmonies which compliment their tight, confident music.

My Vitriol released their first album well over a year ago, and the fact that tonight's gig was "downsized" from the larger capacity Pyramids Centre proves that some new material is needed to sustain fans' interest.  There have been a couple of B-sides and cover versions in the meantime, as well as a new single (the somewhat weak 'Moodswings'), and these tracks have been hastily repackaged with an American, remixed version of the 'Finelines' album for release in the UK, so effectively the set remains the same as My Vitriol's previous Pompey gigs.  The move to the Wedgewood Rooms in actual fact benefits the band, with many hot, scantily clad and sweaty revellers crowd surfing and generally leaping about in the almost unbearable heat - the fans plead for water in between songs, rather than shout out the usual requests for songs.  The lack of new material is soon forgotten when the group blast through over an hour's worth of storming rock gems - although it's a shame they neglect to play one of their strongest new tunes, the simple yet rugged 'Vapour Trails', contained on the new single. 

By their own admission, My Vitriol have been so busy touring during the last year and a half, that they simply haven't had enough time to get into the studio to record a new album, so on reflection we should be grateful to have witnessed a fine band play live so many times in a city largely ignored on the live circuit.  This gig serves as a reminder of just how great My Vitriol's debut really was, and how much better the next one may be if Som Warner can just cram a bit more melody into the songs than he has on the latest single.  The band members look absolutely exhausted from the heat by the end of the set, and their slightly sluggish musicianship can be forgiven given the climate.  Som thanks the crowd for "sharing a bath with us", and promises to bring a portable air conditioning unit with him when they next return.  Let's just hope that won't be any later than next summer...

Review: Andrew Morrison