No Shattered Dreams on tonight’s lineup – they were due to play, but split up the evening before the gig. A shame, as they were a very good outfit, but reducing the show to a three-band bill does make the night feel a little more relaxed.

First on are The Lilith Project, a young goth/metal band who are only playing their third gig, and their inexperience shows. Starting somewhat inauspiciously with a timid reading of the theme from 28 Days Later, they move on to some clunky three-chord originals which, while by no means bad, take me back to my first sixth-form band. Under-developed songs, played with more enthusiasm than skill, and lacking a real identity or any great hooks. They gain kudos for their cover of Sisters of Mercy’s ‘Temple of Love’, but the rest of the set is somewhat anonymous. I don’t want to give them a hammering, because there’s the germ of something decent here, and if they play to their strengths they could certainly be a good band in six months. They have a great asset in the form of their singer and frontwoman, a towering lady with a thousand-yard stare and air of mystique (not to mention that she’s a good singer too). If they can develop their stagecraft and knock together a few more tunes, they could be on to something.

Tonight is not really the night for Green Children Of The Wolfpit. There’s a few Reeds fans trickling in, and they’re most definitely not the target audience for some deep, dark folk. Frankly, I’m not in the mood for it either tonight, so I didn’t catch their whole set, but Green Children are clearly an extremely talented group, melding harp, mandolin, fiddle and squeeze-box with some exquisite three-part harmonies to create an eerie, brooding take on the traditional folk format. They’re well enough received by the growing audience, but you can sense the crowd disconnecting, which is a shame, as in the right lineup Green Children would be sublime. Certainly a band I’d like to see again under different circumstances: preferably in the wee hours of a winter’s morning, locked in at a remote country pub.

Vested interest alert: I’ve previously played in bands with the singer and bassist from The Reeds, so I’m pretty familiar with what’s about to come, despite it being their first proper gig. Hopefully The Lilith Project are still around to see a band who know how to perform on stage, because straight off the bat it’s clear that the Reeds are comfortable up there; energetic, well rehearsed and with a good variety of material. Musically, they’re something of a throwback to Britpop/baggy days, with nods to the likes of Oasis and the Jam/Weller, even a touch of Green Day punkiness here and there, and they’d fit comfortably alongside local favourites Black Hats. It’s not ferociously original, but it’s all well played with good hooks, and they even get the crowd dancing with ‘The Kids Go Crazy’. It’s good to see that they’ve managed to pull a respectable crowd; things were looking a bit sparse at the start of the gig, but the numbers increase significantly for the headliners and it’s a short but well-received set, an excellent way to end the night.