Anyone turning up under the misapprehension that they were here to see the poet, academic and controversial "disagreer" Tom Paulin might not be entirely disappointed with the band bearing his name. The Blackburn five-piece are rediscovering the art of polemic and discourse. Their new, faintly controversial single, Riot in the Summertime, bears the sleeve message: "Do something about it." And their publicity material declares that, "We are dangerous because we desire freedom... If we're not causing trouble, we're not doing it right." This is just the sort of incendiary stuff needed in pop at the moment, although anyone diving in at the Deep End expecting anarchy will be as bemused as those here for the bloke from the Late Review.
The band look more like students than guitar-toting desperadoes, although in a certain light, frontpeople Jamie Holman and Stacey McKenna could pass for the Velvet Underground's Lou Reed and Nico. As with Belle and Sebastian - an obvious influence - the gulf between Tompaulin's ideologies and their music is vast. Their message is one of civil disobedience, and their music meekly follows blueprints long established by the Velvets (music) and the Smiths (lyrics). In fact, many of Holman's words reek of Morrissey, without quite the wit and invention. These are unglamorously glum songs of council houses, secret affairs, middle-class boys seeking deviance and pretty girls who always have horrible boyfriends.
Too often, the vibe is closer to a mid-1980s indie disco than the class war or pop war frontline. "This one was produced by the Jesus and Mary Chain," says Holman, introducing Riot to bemused silence. "Er. You know - the Jesus and Mary Chain!"
Equally, Tompaulin's crafted sensitivity and sub-New Order basslines seem rooted in a bygone age. Tompaulin are not without great songs: the harmony-drenched The Boy Hairdresser is quietly stunning. But it all seems too dated and understated for any great number of people to care. To motivate the masses, they will have to look beyond music of dwindling, minority appeal.
· At 93 Feet East, London E1 (020-7247 3293) on September 25, then touring to Nottingham, Newcastle and Leeds.
