T on the Fringe - Nizlopi @ Liquid Room, August 11th

On the way into the Liquid Room tonight, someone quips, "Half these people are only here for JCB." Maybe it's unfair, but the silence from half the crowd, even when Nizlopi begin their set in the middle of the floor, probably says something. Encouraging crowd participation from the off, however, they engage their audience so well that, when JCB Song passes, it does so without much ferment or ado. More hip-hop than on record, Nizlopi's live sound is bolstered by John Parker's human beatbox and Luke Concannon's adlibs, and relies heavily on songs from "Half These Songs Are About You" and forthcoming release "ExtraOrdinary". With Cocannon leading an open invitation to join the band on stage and telling everyone to hug each other - they all do, happily – by the time the band return for their encore, they have the whole audience eating out of the palms of their hands. [Neil Ferguson]