Let’s face it if you want mainstream pop acts you don’t go to Norwich Arts Centre and this night was no exception.  | | Kid Carpet isn't a self conscious muso |
First up is Kid Carpet. Striding through the auditorium and climbing up onto the stage is hardly the most rock and roll of entrances and this is compounded with his opening admission that he is stuffed with curry so he has to go a bit careful.
But just 30 seconds in and it’s quite clear that Kid Carpet doesn’t do careful.
On stage Kid is a blur as he punches buttons on his keyboards and samplers, looking very much like a Fisher Price Chemical Brothers.
Musically he lies somewhere between Bis and the Lo-Fidelity All-Stars but with impeccable comedy timing.
 | | Kid Carpet takes his pick |
Kid describes his music as shit-hop, electwroniga or kiddy disco punk depending on his mood and uses his songs to express his troubles with his day to day dealings with life.
Half-way through the set Kid brings out his secret weapon: kids' instruments and toys.
All converted to be played through a PA, Kid is a joy to watch as he rocks out to a cover of Jump by Van Halen while playing a flashing toy guitar.
You really have to do a double take to make sure the person on stage really is playing a cheap version of the old Simon Says machine.
I hope a major label picks up on Kid and sends his art into the mainstream because it’s rare to see someone play with such passion and that many toys!
How do you follow that? Well, I will tell you: you bring out the Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players.
 | | Mom Trachtenburg operates the projector |
The Trachtenburgs are a family from New York who live for thrift stores (that’s charity shops to you and me).
They buy clothes, instruments and everything they need from these shops. A modern day Wombles if you will.
More importantly they buy old collections of slides and then like any normal family they write songs based on their slide finds.
So as Mommy (Tina) Trachtenburg works the slide projector, daddy Jason plays guitar and keyboards and 11-year-old daughter Rachel plays drums.
For the next hour we are transported into their innocent world of mini-rock operas about McDonalds, a yearly meeting from 1976, songs about eggs and, of course, my favourite, Mountain Trip To Japan, 1959.
 | | Rachel enjoys another late night |
After their backstage rider requests of fruit and sweets are given to the crowd we have a quick question and answer session in which we learn they make their own clothes and that Rachel would pretty much to do every job in the world (and she probably will) and then it's off to bed.
Equally creepy and charming, the Trachtenburgs have to been seen to be believed - and if you were wondering they sound like the Polyphonic Spree covering the soundtrack to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang!
The Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players and Kid Carpet played at the Norwich Arts Centre on Thursday 2 September 2004.
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