The Cathode Ray & Electrical Melting Company – Edinburgh Traverse Bar

First up in the night’s intriguingly titled diversion were the aptly named Electrical Melting Company who proceeded to meld, with great affection, their many late-60’s influences. Being quite the event for Edinburgh musical alumni the trio consisted of ex-Spooks Ron Doo Ron, AKA Scott Fraser (bass & vox) and Peach McNulty, AKA Pod Kennedy (guitars & vox) supported on drums by longtime associate and ex-Ringo Graham Bodenham. Kicking off with a Neil Innes quote, ‘here’s a medley of hit’ their clutch of tunes landed upon almost every Austin Powers reference point; The Beatles Revolver-era ‘Suburban Bourbon Man’, the Traffic/Donovan/Barratt-inspired ‘Mile High Strawberry Pie’, a straight cover of The Airplane’s ‘White Rabbit’ (apologies, ‘straight’ is an insult in this context), some rousing, un-tamed Townsend/Dave Davis guitar punctuating proceedings appropriately.

The Cathode Ray wasted no time taking advantage of the warmed-up room, kicking in with first ever single ‘What’s It All About’ and another track from the first long-player followed by recent single ‘Travelling In Style’ from the latest oeuvre and fourth album ‘Advance Retreat’. While it’s easy to identify their self-professed admiration for late 70’s New York and Manchester there was more than a hint of something local, unsurprisingly given the personnel’s roots in Postcard-era early 80’s. Paul Haig (Josef K) was actually one of the founder members before choosing to pursue other avenues, Jeremey Thoms having flown the flag since 2006. They careered through tunes ranging from the space-ey ballad ‘Few & Far Between’ to a grunge-ey Sugar-tinged ‘Halcyon Days’ and most points in between, ‘Consequences’ a memorable moment.

With David Mack on drums and new recruit Sean Allison on bass, Thoms’ delivered his lyrics of wry introspection and yearning, complimented by the assured guitar of Phil Biggs (playing one of his own creations, no less) treating us to Marr-esque mellifluousness and Verlaine-style volatility, creating an atmospheric dynamic that didn’t require a strobe or infusion of dry ice. Apparently, this was their first Edinburgh gig since 2019, let’s hope there’s more to follow – it’s been written that the band sit between pop and art but a shake of rock savagery in a scruffier venue might not go amiss.

Reviewer: Roger Jacobs

Reviewed: 30^th January 2026

North West End UK Rating: