Rob GarrattAnyone with the common complaint that 'modern bands' are too static on stage, spending too much time nursing their instruments with a maudlin look, is advised to check out Jim Jones, and his Revue.Rob Garratt

Norwich Arts Centre

Anyone with the common complaint that 'modern bands' are too static on stage, spending too much time nursing their instruments with a maudlin look, is advised to check out Jim Jones, and his Revue.

Lax on invention, but high on adrenalin; they grabbed the mouldy corpse of fifties rock n' roll and pulled it kicking and screaming into the 21st century.

Like Jerry Lee Lewis as played by the Sex Pistols, blues riffing infused with punk thrashing; two mangled Gibson, bass, drums, and a keyboard that had to be hammered to be heard.

Despite an abundance of sharp-dressed, hard rocking sidemen, all eyes were on Jones himself as he pranced the stage theatrically in a gothic waistcoat, like Nick Cave doing his best Steven Tyler impression.

The Revue had the great honour of supporting rock n' roll founder Chuck Berry last year, and its frankly baffling to know what the seated crowd for those exclusive gigs made of the Revue's demented, vamped-up take on the genre.

Another high-profile fan is Jack White - and they are exactly the kind of dirty-yet-traditional outfit you can see him falling in love with.

Despite having two LPs under their belt, their set of blink-and-you-miss-'em, identikit blues-punk tunes was over in little over a half hour, but they were soon back for a four-song encore that exhausted anyone still standing after the sonic onslaught.

I've heard the Arts Centre management pledge a no cover band guarantee in the past, but this went pleasantly sailing out the window with support from local Johnny Cash revivalists Sun Of Cash, who gave a spot-on interpretation of the three-part Sun Records sound, with not a twang or quiff out of place.

Photos: Steve Hunt