Cardiff’s Houdini Dax are a bulgingly exciting up and coming sensation, born from the mucky coitus of psychedelic-era Beatles, The Kinks and Arctic Monkeys.

Comprised of Jack Butler (guitar, vocals), David Newington (drums, backing vocals), Emyr Honeybun (guitar, backing vocals), and Owen Richards (bass, backing vocals), their arrival on the scene was hastened by Radio Wales DJ Adam Walton who chose them for this BBC Live Session on the strength of the first demo he heard.

Houdini Dax have received a wealth of airplay, forcible eviction from the C.I.A stage and a recording contract with See Monkey Do Monkey.

They released those rambunctious first BBC live sessions on a EP entitled unsurprisingly enough Live on the Adam Walton show, BBC Radio Wales EP late last year on local label See Monkey Do Monkey when they played a special EP launch at Cardiff’s Tommy’s Bar with label mates and local legends The Keys.

The songs that make up this unique, vital sounding BBC Live Sessions EP exhibit The Houdini Dax’s irresistible, feel good, melodies, and head bobbing, rhythm section that’s reminiscent of your favourite early Beatles classics.

This special live EP opens with Robin You Lie that’s insistent toe tapping vocals, twangy guitars, and playful rhythms are redolent of primetime era Moptops. And that’s not all, when the frenetic guitar licks kick at the end it’s like being thrust into the middle of a raucous, foot stomping party.

Second track Mr Pascoe shows off the Dax’s subtler, weirder side. Its hypnotic vocal chant is deliciously complimented by stomping hammond organs and twitchy guitar lines that recalls 70s garage rock.

Meanwhile Fizzy Moon squelchy fuzz riffs, and addictive, ghostly vocals echoes with an eerie psychedelic groove, redolent of the most recent Arctic Monkeys record and the Krautrock of Can.

Bonus track Struggling In The Sand is a joyous, bittersweet, Kinks-esque strum down the shore, that playfully kicks sand up in the verses, only pausing for breath in the middle eight for a moment of quiet reflection before the effervescent, surrealist lyrics kick back in, then finally collapsing face down on the beach.

Houdini Dax are currently holed up in a studio in Cardiff recording their debut album which is already attracting label interest.

Houdini Dax are a band of tomorrow, but best of all you can see them and hear them now. Just don’t get mad when they show you how prodigious and young they are!

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